Mission X
by Wannabe X-man
Summary: The day has come. The government has begun it’s attack on the mutant community. Only one man stands in their way, Gambit. His sacrifice to ensure the safety of his team will cost him dearly. Will he ever be the same man again?
1. Chapter 1

I do not own the x-men, but they live in my head so what can ya do?

The day had finally arrived, and no amount of training had prepared them for the madness that ensued. It was around 2 o'clock in the morning, and all was relatively peaceful around the grounds of the X-mansion. Most were asleep, with the exception of Bishop who never slept, and Wolverine who was carving into a cold turkey breast left over from dinner as a late night snack. No one could have anticipated what was just around the corner. No one, including the Professor, could have ever seen it coming. In fact the only one who did was 18 miles away, pushing his Harley to a speed that even he could barley control.

Gambit was racing against time, racing against the inevitable doomsday that he had only just discovered was minutes away. He had stumbled across it quiet by accident, during a recon mission for the Thieves Guild. Although he was not officially still a member, Jean-Luke often made small requests for his talents in guild related matters. This time, he had asked Remy to hack into some important government files that were only to be found in Washington D.C. The task was simple enough, but some what dangerous considering the high tech security most government run facilities had. Gambit got in with out a hitch, found the files needed, and started the down load, easy as pie. He let his mind wander to his up coming date with Rouge the fallowing evening, smiling to himself as he pictured her face after he told her were they were going. She had lit up, those beautiful, luscious lips widening into a smile, framed by that gorgeous face and her soft flowing hair.

That was when he noticed it out of the corner of his eye, a file by the name of, "Mission:5212-X." None of the other files had letters in them, and for some unexplained reason, Remy knew in his gut what the X stood for. Hesitating for only a moment, he swallowed hard and clicked open the file. It was classified as expected, but he just let his little password decryptor that was plugged into the hard drive do all the work. With in seconds the file had been opened and as the bluish white glare of the screen lit up Remy's face, a look of horror filled his demonic eyes. On the screen was a list of all the different X teams beginning with the X-Men. Each team had an attached file with the location of all it's bases of operation, head quarters, and a complete map out of all the security and codes. There was information on each member of the teams and their families, their allies and even their enemies. Mure Island was listed as a point of attack containing important mutant information. And even Magneto was listed as a situational alie, with all of his bases and security layouts. The list went on to include the Hell Fire Club and other such Mutant based organizations. Remy worked fast to down load these new files, feeling a serge of panic, he had broken out in a cold sweat. Finally his eyes locked on one last link that read, "Date of Execution." He clicked on it and practically choked as he saw the date and time, only a few hours away.

Gambit took a turn too fast almost wiping out, but amazingly did not. He had to get back to the mansion and warn them. The X-Men were first on the list, the first to be attacked. Soon, the beautiful grounds of the X-Mansion would be completely over run by an army of sentinels accompanied by an army of men with stun guns. They had a power dampening field along with an arsenal of weaponry to counteract the Mansion's security system. That combined with the intimate knowledge of each X-Man, their strengths and weaknesses, was enough to make the normally confidant Cajun, less then confident. Once they took down the X-Men, they would move on to X-Factor, claming to need their services and luring them into a trap. They were after all a government funded unit, but now mutants had been deemed to dangerous, so the very people that had created them, would help destroy them. On to X-Force, Generation X, Excalibur, the list was a mile long. Almost every mutant group ever formed for good or evil was about to be rounded up like animals and thrown into cages. He had even found a list of locations for the mutant prisons that had already been constructed. They were scattered across the country, each in a desolate location, heavily guarded and surrounded by energy fields that would suppress any mutants powers. It was an operation years in the making and each soldier had been hand picked and trained for this exact purpose.

That was why two hours out of D.C, he broke into a small library and hacked into the system. Shoving the disk into the Hard drive he sent the files to every mutant based operation he could think of, with the title of the emails headed, "EMERGANCY!" Then, deciding he had to get the info out to the general public as well, he sent the files, slightly edited for individuals safety, to every major news casting network on the planet, that way, the mutants he couldn't reach, would find out one way or another. He also thought about stopping to warn the Morlocks but decided time was of the essence, and it was.

Gambit was coming up on the last turn toward the mansion. He looked down at his communicator that was only receiving static, he had guessed the attack forces had already put up fields surrounding the mansion, making it impossible for him to contact them, or for them to contact any one else for help. As he approached the turn, a sixth sense, he often attributed to his empathy told him to stop and go into the woods. With out a moment of hesitation he did just that, veering off into the woods along the road and parking behind some shrubs and trees. Less then ten seconds later he saw eight army trucks headed for the mansion, off in the distance he could here the approaching helicopters and the sound of countless sentinels closing in. It was at this moment that Remy's mind began to weigh his options.

He could, A) Turn his bike around and head as far away as possible, wishing his former team mates the best of luck. Clear out his Swiss bank accounts, resort back to wearing sun glasses all the time, and travel to some tropical island where the term mutant has yet to be heard of. This, he decided immediately was not an option and cursed himself for thinking of it first. Plane B) He could realize that any chance of winning this battle was futile and hope for the best, leaving his team mates to their own devices and head off to warn others of doomsday. Maybe if he could rally up the other teams, and possibly get Magneto to help, they could track down his captured comrades and form a rescue mission, that is, if he had any team mates left alive to rescue. Sighing he shook his head.

With a mighty thrust, he pushed his bike forward as it roared to life. Time for plane C), get to the mansion seconds before the army shows up, warn his friends, and if necessary, die fighting. He was once again headed toward the mansion, cutting though the woods instead of the road to buy him some time and because the roads were already occupied. He cursed in French for having to use his magnificent Harley as a dirt bike, darting threw trees as branches scratched his face and tore at his clothes. He was so near now he could see the wall that ran along Xavier's property. With a move James Bond couldn't have pulled off he used a fallen log as a ramp, launching him up toward the wall. Unfortunately his Harley wasn't going to make it so he released his iron grip and pushed him self from it, flipping over the wall and rolling as he hit the ground. His masterpiece crashed on the other side with a small explosion, and his heart ached for a moment for his pride and joy. But the moment he stopped rolling he was on his feet running as fast as he could. The estate was large and had a lot of ground to cover. The part of the wall he had surmounted was still about half a mile away from the mansion, but the explosion would have set off the alarms, awaking his team mates.

He was almost to the door when he was greeted by half of the team, all in sleep wear but posed for fighting. The sound of helicopters and sentinels was closing in and so were the army trucks.

"Gambit!…….What's going on?" Scott asked.

"WE GOTTA GO!………..GRABE DE OTHERS AN GO TO DE BLACK BIRD!" Remy was still about 50 feet away, but was running fast.

"Goddess,……what is that sound?" Storm was rising in the air to get a better view of the sky when suddenly a cold shiver ran through her. Her powers were gone and she began to fall from 20 feet in the air. Remy quickly out stretched his arms, catching the startled weather goddesses. "My powers!" She gasped as the others all tried in vain to use their own.

"We can' use em',……….and we soon tah be out numbered!" Remy panted as he set her down.

"Out numbered?…..By who?…..What was that explosion?" The questions were almost simultaneous as his confused team mates glanced at one another then back to Gambit.

"NON!…….DEY COMEING!……..SI VOUS PLATE!……WE MUST HURRY!…….NO TIME TO EXPLANE!" Gambit's voice was bordering between fear and urgency, a tone that was not commonly used by the laid back Cajun. Wisely, the others decided not to argue.

"RIGHT!…….YOU HEARD HIM PEOPLE, GRAB ANY AVALBLE WEPONS AND HEAD FOR THE BLACK BIRD, JEAN AND STORM, LOCATE THE OTHERS AND TELL THEM THE SAME!……..WE'RE OUTTA HERE IN 5!." Cyclops had on his commander voice and every one went scattering. He turned to Gambit and took in his appearance, thin bloody scratches across his face, and his trench coat torn. Remy's eyes were glued forward to the distant sight of little men in black hurtling over the walls

"Gambit, what….' But before he could say another word Remy pushed them both inside and locked the doors. Then he punched in an emergency over ride code that sent the security systems on high alert, guns came out of the ground and started shooting any thing that moved. It was then that the earth began to shake as sentinel after sentinel landed right out side their door. The two men were off down the hall way toward the hanger. They threw themselves into the elevator just as the front door exploded open.

"Gambit!" Cyclops demanded, still in his night shirt and sweats.

"Here!…….Take dis!……It explain every t'ing!" He shoved the hard disk into Scott's hands. "We gotta go help X-factor!…..Dey next on de list of attack!"

"But who's attacking!" Scott demanded.

"De government Cyclops!……Dey finally coming for us!" Both men stared at one another, sharing a gaze of dread. The day had finally come. The elevator opened and they ran out, just as the power shut off. Every thing went black, then was lit up by an eerie green, as the emergency generators kicked on. As they made their way toward the hanger they practically collided with Beast, Arc Angle, Betsey, Ice Man and Bishop.

"Where are the others!" Scott demanded.

"We took the stares, ……they must have taken the other elevator, but the power is down so they may be trapped!" Warren answered.

"I will locate them!" Betsey put her hands to her head then looked up in shock. "My powers have been neutralized."

"Oui,……….Dere be an energy field suppressing our powers!………Dats why we must leave now!" Gambit whispered as they stood silent, listening to the sound of people running though the upper levels. Orders were being shouted and the unmistakable sound of Sentinels crashing threw the roof caused them to hold their breaths.

"Every one get in the plane and prepare it for automatic lift off, Bishop, you and your gun come with me!" Scott's voice was low and cautious. Gambit ignored the orders and fallowed as well, feeling that for some reason, this might be the last time he got to see Rouge.

As they round the corner, the familiar sound of adomantium ripping through steel echoed in the hall. Wolverine jumped down the rest of the elevator shoot then sliced open the doors, the others fallowing. He staggered out into the hall way, feeling slightly dizzy from lose of blood, his long claws still out, red droplets falling off the tips. His hands and for arms were covered in his blood, as was his white tee-shirt. Logan growled at the throbbing pain, numbing his arms. Storm was next down the shoot, her brow beaded with sweat and her long snowy hair was becoming tangled. Remy felt disconcerted with how fragile they now looked, no longer powerful and fierce.

Colossus was next, still tall and muscular, but only as strong as a normal human. He reached his arms up as Jean and Rouge lowered Xavier down to him. As the mighty Russian held their founder in his arms, Charles's eyes locked on Gambit. A look was shared; one that communicated the Professor's awareness of some unspoken finally to this nightmare, one that Gambit could feel in the pit of his stomach. Jean hoped out, concern etched across her face as she ran to Scott. Then Rouge was there, in only a green tank top and white underwear. Similarly, some of the other X-Men were in only boxers or a night slip. Her long auburn hair, so like his own, was pulled back in a messy clump of hair, lose strands falling all over, her white streak, gently caressing her left cheek, resting curled at her collar bone. Her sparkling emerald eyes were big and round, like a frightened deer. And she bit her bottom lip nervously as she ran forward.

"Remy!" Was all she could say before a loud explosion shook the under levels of the house, as smoke and debris came flying down the elevator shaft. She fell forward into his strong arms that quickly lifted her up as they all took off running toward the Blackbird. She was stunned at how vulnerable she felt with out her normal strength, and with out much covering her. As they made their way into the hanger, the voices of men were right behind them, and a stun dart came sailing threw the air, embedding it's self in Bishops arm. Cyclops quickly grabbed him, pulling him threw the door just as a ten more sailed toward him. Pounding out the lock code in hast, the door slammed shut just as the army men closed in. Bishop was stumbling over his own feet and his gun fell to the floor. Gambit set down Rouge as he and Scott, attempted to hold up the barely conscious man, dragging him into the Blackbird, the others right behind them.

Quickly they all got settled as Warren prepared for lift off. Every one was talking at once, asking questions that seemed to have no answers. Rouge and Gambit were instantly in each others arms. Her eyes wide as she reached up touching the pink and red scratches on his face. He leaned into her touch, closing his eyes as he felt her bare skin instead of gloves. She was just about to ask him what happened when they heard Warren curse.

"FUCK!" He shouted slamming his fists on the dashboard.

"What is it?" Scott was by his side. Every one grew silent.

"They've jammed up the controls to get the hanger open, and put a lock on the over ride system……..We can't take off unless the hanger is manually opened, and even then it will have to be hacked, and held that way until were out!" Warren's voice was exasperated. No one said a word as it sunk in what had to be done. One of them would have to stay behind and sacrifice them selves for the good of the team. The air grew stale and the sound of every one breathing became amplified. It was then that Gambit knew what he had to do. After all no one was as fast at hacking into computer systems besides Beast, and a doctor would be needed fare more then a thief. He sighed as if resigned to his fate.

"I will go." His voice was clear and untainted with fear or hesitation. They all looked to him in surprise.

"Remy,….No!" Rouge squeaked as she held him tight, her eyes pleading.

"Gambit be de logical choice Chere!…….I be fast at hacking and got a better chance at escaping wit out any mutant powers!" He looked to Xavier who nodded solemnly.

"No way!……If the Cajun stays then so do I!" Wolverine growled. "Why should he get all the fun!" Logan was slumped in a chair, still bleeding as he wrapped his torn tee-shirt around each hand.

"No Logan,….Your in no condition to fight!……..I'll stay!" Cyclops said sternly.

"No mon amie!…….You got a team tah lead!…….Dey gonna need ya!" Gambit stared hard at Scott until he finally nodded.

"Gambit,………..if you do not escape,……..they will interrogate you…..possibly, torture you." The Professor said looking into his demonic eyes with sorrow.

"Don' worry Prof!…..Remy know how tah keep his mouth shut!………Got trained by de t'ives how to separate moi mind from de body,………I won't say a t'ing!" Their was confidence in his voice and beneath that a need to prove himself, to show them once and for all that he was worthy of being an X-Man. That he deserved their trust. After another moment of silence a loud bang shook the hanger as a sentinel landed on top of it and began to dig down to find the metal ceiling beneath the ground.

"Uh guys,…….were in a hurry here!" Bobby said nervously.

"Shut up Bobby!,……Remy……Ah……Ah can't abandon you again!" Rouge had tears in her eyes. "……Let me stay with you!" She begged.

"No Chere, dey gonna need all de help dey can!" He said softly stroking her cheek.

"Gambit,….." The professor placed Cerebro on his head as Remy knelt down in front of him, already knowing what had to happen. " Despite the suppression field around us, Cerebro emits a protective field of it's own, affording me the slightest amount of my telepathy…………I do not doubt that you would not intentionally betray us,……….but we are not certain of what methods they may employ to find out the information they want." He placed a hand on Remy's head, concentrating. "If it gets to be to much,……..and you can no longer remain in control of your own mind,………I will give you a code word,……..and the second it passes though your lips,……….your mind will be swiped completely,………but not lost,…………just hidden, deep in the recesses of the mind that are as of yet uncharted, un used." Remy felt a buzzing tingle, like his brain was on vibrate, then the word flashed threw his mind, the password to oblivion. He opened his eyes and nodded as Xavier looked upon the strong independent young man before him. "We will come for you!" He held Remy's face and the Cajun leaned forward, kissing his teacher on the forward. Gambit turned to Storm, who was crying silently, they embraced and kissed each other on each cheek.

"May the Goddesses be with you my brother!" she whispered in his ear. Cyclops was next, grabbing his for arm and resting his other hand on Gambit's shoulder.

"Be careful!…..None of that cocky bullshit your known for!……..As soon as you can get away……."

"Oui Cyke,……I promise!" A smile drew on his lips. Jean Kissed his cheek, Bobby punched him in the shoulder, and Beast lifted him in a bare hug, squeezing tight.

"Use that pretty head of yours for more then flirtin!………..Stay sharp Gumbo!" Wolverine growled, feeling the need to say something more, but unable to. The hanger shook again as the ceiling began to rip apart. The sound was unnerving and Gambit headed for the ramp, but not before he swept up Rouge in his arms, and with eyes burning with passion, he kissed her deeply. Their lips pressed together as their tongues became familiar. It was a kiss beyond compare, one not soon to be forgotten, and it spoke more then words ever could. At last he reluctantly pulled away, whispering in her ear.

"Je amour!…….You be moi heart!" She sobbed softly as he slipped his trench coat off and wrapped her in it, leaving her with one last kiss, before running down the ramp and toward the hanger exit, flashing them one of his famous Cajun grins. He picked up Bishops gun as he ran. Reaching the exit, he typed in a series of codes on the control panel until it short circuited, the doors springing open. Warren turned on the vertical thrusters and as they flew away, they caught a glimpse of the Sentinels crashing threw the hanger as the army men blew open the doors, surrounding their team mate and friend. Gambit ginned as he began to fire Bishop's over sized gun. They gazed back at the over run mansion, their home, and their doomed amie.

Remy fought long and hard, taking down half of the army and two sentinels before the gun ran out. Then he opened his retractable metal Bo staff and went to work, knocking out every man that came with in 5 feet of him. Through sheer force he drove them back far enough for him to run threw the open doors into the mansion, but everywhere he turned there where more army men, and soon he was cornered, surrounded on every side. Gambit sighed to him self, better to die fighting, then in a prison cell. With that thought in mind, he swirled his bo, and gave the solders his most shit eating grin.

"Ya wanna play wit Gambit?…….Lets see what ya got?" He stepped into a fighting stance, his demonic eyes, glowing bright red in the eerie green of the dark hall ways. Every gun was pointed at him, and the air was deathly silent. A man stepped up, in what looked like a general's uniform. He frowned at the mutant, observing him closely. He recognized him at once as the X-Man known as Gambit, real name Remy LeBeau, a trained thief and suspect of numerous innertpole investigations, none of which found enough evidence to actually make an arrest. The man seemed confidant, if not cocky, but that was just a cover up. He knew he was finished, that there was no way out of here unless he surrendered, but that would not likely happen.

"Your out numbered Mr. LeBeau!…….Drop your weapon or we will be forced to take it from you!" The General's voice was cold and unfeeling, a man who was completely desensitized to violence. Remy knew men like him, men who could stare right threw you and see nothing but a block of mass, dehumanizing you. It made him shiver, and his stomach crunch, but even more unnerving was the fact the man knew his name. It made sense of coarse, he had seen the files, but still, Remy was used to his anonymity and to have it taken away made him uneasy.

"No t'anks, I like de odds!………..an' you can forget 'bout me dropping dis here bo staff, ain't gonna happen!" Remy grinned again, eyes fierce as hot coals.

"Fine,……..suit your self!.……..Shoot him!" The words had barley left his mouth when his soldiers started to fire their stun darts at Remy, who in return dodged and back flipped to avoid the attack. Spinning his bo at a ridiculous speed, he managed to deflect most of the attack. But even his supreme agility and speed could not keep up with the constant flow of fire from the increasingly numerous troupes, and finally, he was struck by a dart, then another. Staggering a bit he pulled out the darts and advanced forward, sticking out even as he fell to his knees. Every thing seemed slow and heavy, and a warm fuzzy, dizziness threaten to sallow him. His arms dropped as numbness worked it's way trough his system, and soon his iron grip on the bo was loosened, until the weapon fell to the floor. His breathing slowed as did his heart rate, and the last thing he saw and herd as his blurred vision faded into blackness, was the cold hearted words of the general.

"Now will see just how long it takes to brake an X-Man!" He laughed in a low chuckle as the demonic eyes closed and the mutant's body went completely limp, crumbling onto the floor.


	2. Chapter 2

It had been a month since the government had first begun their attack on the mutant race. Fortunately all their careful planning and months of preparation was all for not, because of one little mutant thief who managed to stumble across the classified information and warn many of the targets. The X-men had escaped as did X-Factor and X-Force and a large number of other mutant established groups. Soon a sort of underground rail road had been born and it wasn't long before all the mutants who had been forced to flee their hide outs and bases had found a common sanctuary and headquarters for their operations. It was an abandoned saw mill, long since forgotten, that they set up shop, originally discovered by Magneto years ago. With both Magneto and his followers working side by side with Xavier and his, the old, worn factory remained so in it's outward appearance, but inside and down below, new chambers were created, rooms to sleep in, kitchens, laboratories, a medical ward, a conference room and several other lounge like areas. It was almost remarkable how quickly the structure was built, a maze of underground tunnels and levels, resembling an ant farm. It was set up similar to the Morlock tunnels but more advanced like Magneto's asteroid M. Many of the mutants had made daring recover missions back to their original bases and homes, managing to salvage anything from cloths and furniture to weapons, and high-tech computers and technology. Risking the possibility of capture to bring these necessities back to "Camelot," the code name for their new base. The name had been decided by Xavier and Magneto, who both related it back to a favorite novel, "The Once and Future King."

It was here in this new sanctuary that the first conference of the, "United Mutant Liberation Force", was held. The large conference room was packed as mutants that had once fought each other as enemies, now stood side by side, all be it uncomfortably, prepared to hear the two leaders speak. On a metal stage area, Magneto stood next to Professor Xavier, who had just gotten his shiar hover chair returned to him after a recent recover mission back to the mansion. Eric Lensuir, placed one hand on his old friends shoulder, happy to be working together but regretting the circumstances. He lifted the other to motion for silence. It took a few moments, but eventually the room hushed, and he stepped forward to speak.

"My brothers and sisters!……….I am relieved that after such a chaotic past few weeks, so many of you could make the journey to our new sanctuary. I am grieved by the lose we have suffered as a community, but rejoice that at last we are united in our efforts. No longer shall we fight amongst our selves!………Despite past differences, we must learn to work together, to watch over each other, to keep our ears to the ground and be willing to fight for one another……..I am sure all of you know one mutant or another that has gone missing or was blatantly captured during the attacks. It is our top priority as the United Mutant Liberation Force, to rescue our captive comrades and deliver them from what ever prison they have been confined to. We are fortunate enough to have been given a list of probable mutant prisons or internment camps, all located in desolate locations all around North America." A large projector displayed the down loaded computer files against the wall behind him. "This list was provided to us by the same brave and courageous individual, who discovered the governments plane of attack and warned so many of us just in time." He paused and looked to Charles who's head dropped slightly. "Many of you may know him as Gambit, a member of the X-Men. Whether you have fought against this man or along side him, he dissevers our extreme gratitude ……. Unfortunately, like many of our other brother's and sisters, he was taken prisoner by the army, and his whereabouts have yet to be discovered." Eric stopped as Charles moved forward with wet eyes, looking out over the see of faces, many of which he knew.

"Gambit, not only retrieved the vital information of the attacks just before they happened, but he also sacrificed himself so that his team mates could escape…….With out his selflessness,……..many of us would not be here to day!………….In the next several months we will be recruiting as many of you as possible to go on missions to these various listed prison sights, in the hopes of liberating our mutant brethren." He paused and cleared his throat, this next part would be hard to say. "It is more then likely possible that these individuals will have suffered some form of mental and physical torture at the hands of their captors." Before he could continue the crowd broke into angry murmurs and disgusted sighs. Xavier waited for them to become silent once more. "I tell you this only to prepare you for what we may discover. Those who have undergone such treatment, will no doubt be affected, and most likely will need a great deal of support and help from those who care for them. When on these missions, one might find those they are trying to help acting delusional. They may prove to be dangerous to them selves or others and should be handled with great caution." The Professor nodded to Beast who was operating the projector. A picture of Gambit was up on the screen, his demonic eyes laughing and his smile slight and mischievous. A mixture of sounds came from the diverse crowd. " This is a picture of Gambit, aka, Remy LeBeau, also known in some circles as Le Dible Blank……When he offered to remain at the mansion so that the X-men could make our escape, I implanted a mind swipe, to be activated only under dire circumstances, that would occur if he said a certain key word. This mind swipe would temporarily erase all his memories as well as basic knowledge of his skills, leaving him in a type of catatonic state, unresponsive and unreachable to those with out telepathy. I am informing you all of this, simply to prepare those of you that know him and those of you that don't as to what to expect upon finding him……..Please, keep your ears open to any mention of his name, and be aware of what condition he as well as all the others may be in when the rescue missions begin……..Thank you all for your time!" The Professor moved back and Magneto once again stepped forward.

"The first rescue mission will be in one week!……Those who wish to volunteer should sign up. First meeting to discuses tactics will be tomorrow at 01:00 hours!………Questions will be taken then. This meeting is adjourned." Eric turned to Xavier and whispered to his friend, staring him directly in his eyes, "We shall find him Charles,…..do not fear."

………………………………...

Gambit opened his swollen, burning eyes, still stinging from the pepper spray he received the day before when he fought back against the guards, braking one's nose. The lights had come on in his cell, blinding pain shot threw his watering eyes. His lips were chapped and split, puffy and bruised, dry blood rested on his chin and in the corners of his mouth. He made no effort to move his pain filled body as he heard the familiar sound of the morning guards foot steps echoing in the long hall. He had lost count now, how many days he had been at the facility and how many times he felt the overwhelming desire to beg for mercy, cry out like a child and sing like a canary, telling them any thing they wanted to here. However his loyalty to his amies and his stubborn pride prevented him from succumbing to his weakness. He had come close to uttering the secret word on a number of occasions. The word that would ensure the safety of the X-men and other mutants. But still he hesitated, clinging to the diminishing hope that one day they would find him, and he could burry all the pain and humiliation of this time and get on with his life, just as he had so many times before.

The guard unlocked his cell and walked up to him with in inches, an electric tazer in one hand and a leash in the other.

"You gonna be a good boy today freak?……Or am I gonna have to beat you into submission?" The guard chuckled sadistically as the man before him lay silently on the cot, not offering even the slightest sign of acknowledgement, though inwardly he was shuddering. "Just wait till next week when it's my turn to run the night shift!………You won't be so quiet then!……..I'll have you on your hands and knees screaming like a little bitch!" he whispered, his rank breath hot on Remy's face. With a wink and a laugh, he clicked the leash into place on the collar around Remy's neck, suppressing his mutant powers. With a harsh yank, he pulled the weary man off the cot, practically dragging him out of the cell, before Gambit could get to his feet. His wrists were bound together by tight, painful metal wires that were rarely taken off. They had threatened that if he picked the lock to his cell one more time, they would dislocate both his shoulders and brake his wrists and fingers, shoving him in a strait jacket and tightening it till his ribs snapped. He gritted his teeth as he glanced down at the shadow of the man to his left. He couldn't help but fight the urge to kick him in the throat. One solid strike to the jugular and Remy could make a brake for it. He sighed and closed his eyes as he walked the all too familiar rout to the showers. Wait it out, bide your time. Hit them when they least expect it. After yesterdays attempt at resistance he was nearly blinded. He couldn't afford to be reckless, not now.

The only cloths he was permitted to wear was a lose pair of thin gray cotton paints, that hung low on his narrow hips. They had been feeding him less and less as he refused to cooperate, hoping that they could starve him into talking. However after a childhood on the streets with nothing to eat but table scraps and whatever he could find in a trash can, starvation didn't bother him as much. He was decorated with bruises, burns and abrasions from head to toe, and his mop of auburn hair was sweaty and matted over his eyes. Yet despite his disheveled appearance, and obvious pain when walking, he still held his head up high, managing to retain some form of dignity.

The guard led him to a shower area, where four more guards waited, all heavily armed, standing in a circle and laughing about something.

"So, I'm looking at this fucking mutie chick, maybe 15 or 16 at most, and she's crying and wailing and begging me to let her go. Now keep in mind, the General's off doing some-fucking-thing and told me to keep an eye on the little freak. So I say , "Suck my cock and we'll talk about it!" The men laugh again, slapping him on the back.

"So what'd she do?" An equally disgusting soldier asked.

"She starts going for it!" He laughs.

"Did she suck it?"

"Are you kidding!……No way!…..You never know what fucking mutie disease you can catch from those things!……….So she jerked me off instead, and I cumbed in her face!" They all laughed again as they turned to face Gambit and the other guard. Remy's jaw was locked and his breath heavy. It took every thing in him not to lung forward and choke the guard telling the story. That girl would be traumatized for life and they thought it was funny. She was so young, Christ, he could have been talking about Jubilee! The sudden thought brought a wave of nausea in him and he quickly pushed the image away. The guard that had been leading him, undid the leash, as another stepped up and undid the wire around his wrist. As it came off, Remy couldn't help but release a small hiss of pain. The wire had cut into his wrist deeply and there were purplish red rings around each. The guard didn't seem to notice or care as he stepped away again.

"Okay mutie,…..you know the drill!…….Lose the paints and get into the shower!" Another guard sighed. Remy did as he was told and striped down, feeling the eyes of the first guard all over him. It was moments like this that he was glade his empathy was suppressed so he could only speculate what disgusting feelings the man had for him. It wasn't that he was opposed to gay sex, being a very sexually liberated individual, it was the idea of rape that made his stomach cramp up and his body shake. He had dealt with it enough in his life that he was almost desensitized to it, excepting it along with what ever other torture they trough his way. But still, there was something sick and twisted in the way the guard always looked at him that made his skin crawl.

The shower stall was clear so they could watch him, but that wasn't his main concern. He stepped in dreading what he knew would come next. A sudden serge of hot water, almost scolding in temperature was released on him, and he made a conscious effort not to through himself at the door trying to escape the burning sensation the way he had the first time. This only lasted a minute or so before the water stopped. Remy then covered his eyes, nose and mouth as the sting of the anti -biotic chemical vapors were flooded into the sealed booth. He knew from experience that it burned to breath and hurt his eyes. He gritted his teeth as his open cuts screamed as if covered in lemon juice. Finally the last stage was a bombardment of icy wind that blew so hard he couldn't help but hug himself shivering. The automatic lock was released on the door and the painfully clean Cajun stepped out, putting on a fresh pair of gray paints. The guards laughed at him asking if he enjoyed the shower. As usual he kept his poker face in place and his tongue silent. All his smart ass comments and shit eating grins had been used up in the first month or so, and now he relied heavily on the strength of his poker face to hold him intact.

The first guard hooked the leash back onto the collar and grabbed the wire to re-bound his hands. Remy's jaw tightened, and his fists clenched, ready to brace for the pain. Just then another guard stepped up, this one seemed younger then the rest, his eyes softer and his expression one of concern. He suggested that they bandage his wrists before binding them due to how severely they were cutting into him. The others snorted at his attempt to be humane but did not stop him from doing it. The young guard walked up to Gambit with a roll of cloth bandage, looking up at him for the first time, his pale blue eyes locking with Remy's red and black. He appeared to be in his mid twenties like Gambit, where as the other guards were usually in their thirties or forties. He stared into Remy's eyes that had not yet lost their passionate glow, and seemed to be captivated. Gambit couldn't help but let his lips curl up into a smirk. Ironically enough, if he had met the kid at a different place, different time, he had no doubt that within a hour he'd be engaged in some form of sexual deviancy. But this was not a club in Manhattan or a bar in the village, and his smile faded, his eyes turned off to the side.

"Hey Copper,……quit flirting with the freak and wrap 'em up. The General's back and wants to start the interrogation asap!" one of the solders scolded. Quickly the young guard wrapped up Remy's wrists. His touch was gentle and soft and for a shadow of a moment Remy's mind pictured Rouge, his beautiful, firey yet gentle Rouge. He remembered the soft graze of her hand on his face. A guilty pleasure he had relished despite the franticness of what had been going on around them. He remembered leaning into her touch, wanting more. He was snapped back to reality by the numbing pain of the wires on his wrists. The young guard was the one putting them on, and he was doing it looser then the rest had,……maybe lose enough for him to get free. He almost felt bad about trying, knowing the kid would get chewed out for not tying it tighter and letting it cut into him. When Copper was done, Remy looked back into his eyes and for the fist time in weeks muttered a word.

"Mercy.' His throat was horse and dry, but his voice was still smooth. The kid opened his eyes wide as the Cajun was dragged away toward what ever hell awaited him and for not the first time that day, Copper wondered why he was there.

The General had proven to be just as much the heartless son of a bitch Remy had guessed him to be, coming back to the prison every couple of weeks with some new form of torture ready to be tried out. He'd stay a couple of days, than take off again, leaving Remy's body in ruins. On a regular basis Remy had one person or another asking him questions and inflicting pain, but none were as ruthless in their search for information as the General. The man was a few inches shorter then Remy but almost as broad as Wolverine, with a harsh jaw line and gray eyes that chilled you to the core. He had a mustache that covered his top lip so when he spoke all you saw was coffee stained teeth and the smell of cigar smoke and scotch. Remy cursed the man for making him now associate those scents with pain and disgust. The smell of a cigar had always reminded him of Wolverine, and scotch was Xavier's drink of choice, although most of the X-men didn't know he drank at all. Gambit felt the quiet rage building inside him and he smiled, glad to see it was still alive.

The guard leading him, stopped and punched in a code, 212245. Gambit had memorized it immediately upon first arriving, as well as the lay out of the building, or at least the floor he was on. He wondered if the facility was not a prison at all, but a top secret army base, since he seemed to be the only mutant there. Maybe that's why the X-Men hadn't found him yet. They were probably looking for him at the various prison sites listed in the files he had downloaded. This new realization sparked a tiny pang of dread that he swallowed down and refused to dwell on, the possibility that his friends may never find him. That was not the state of mind he had to be in when facing the General, so he settled back into his rage, letting it flow through him, feeding his Cajun temper. The door opened and he stepped inside.

There were six men in the room, all dressed in high ranking uniforms, the General in the middle, turning to face the young mutant before him. He hated this mutant, this creature called Gambit, for all the same reasons he admired him. His strength, his confidence, his seemingly unbreakable pride and loyalty, all of which antagonized the General beyond belief. That, and the fact that every day, more mutants were being rescued and escaping from the many high security prisons that had been constructed to prevent just that. How did the mutants know where the prisons were located, and how did so many of them anticipate the initial attacks, fleeing before the army could even get within a mile of the bases. These were the questions he was going to ask Gambit, when, by sheer luck, one of his men over heard some of the mutant rescuers mention Gambit's name, implying that he had been their source of information, sending it out before he had been captured. This piece of information was what brought the General back to the base a week earlier then planned, with a desire to here the freak scream. This would be more then an interrogation, it would be a lesson in pain, a lesson to teach the obstinate mutie his place, and the punishment for disrupting the General's planes.

The two men locked eyes, neither prepared to back down. It was then that Remy sensed it, a cold shiver ran up his spine as he realized that today, he would not be asked any questions. Nor would the unbearable pain he was sure to suffer stop, even if he did offer them information. He wasn't sure what had happened, but he knew, he knew that today,……..no amount of rage could save him.

………………………………...

The Professor shot up in bed gasping, a cold sweat coating his body. Something was happening, something far off and distant, but close to his heart. Distorted Images of violence and pain had shot through his skull like a sudden migraine then were gone in a flash. He struggled to bring back the memories, to try and slow them down, so he might better understand their origin, but it was in vain. For they were not his own thoughts but some one else's, and they had been so dispirit and graphic, thick with fear and unbelievable pain that some how they had pierced the astral plane and had left a burn. Possibly the work of a minor telepath or inexperienced empapath, calling out for help. Xavier rubbed his temples then stopped, a sudden nauseating realization swept over him and left him with tears in his eyes. Gambit. Some how he had sent out an empathetic scream, probably despite the suppression of his powers. The Professor had always suspected Gambit to be an empapath, but never pushed him on it, considering how private a person Remy was. But it made perfect sense. Charles concentrated and tried to locate his distressed X-Man, but with no luck. Quietly he lay back in bed, the clock read 5:52 am, and he closed his tear filled eyes with the silent knowledge that somewhere out there, Remy was in need of their help.


	3. Chapter 3

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The torture had lasted all day and well into the night, before the General finally grew weary of the sounds of muffled cries and the stench of sweat and blood mixed with vomit and urine. He had wanted to humiliate the man, to drag him threw the dirt and hear him beg for mercy. With every harsh blow and pain filled scream, he felt his frustration released. Finally there was nothing more to do. No more threats to be carried out, no more pleas for mercy to be snickered at. The mutant lay naked, bound and gagged, with three times the number of burns, bruises and abrasions then he had started off with that morning. The General had done to him what he had learned during Vietnam, things that would leave permanent scares. The body of the mutant was still besides shallow wheezing breaths, it's demonic eyes were closed. The General knelt down beside the mutant, wiping his bloody hands on the torn remains of Gambit's pants. With a disgusted look he sneered at the young, pathetic man, feeling powerful.

"Not so cocky now, are you Mutie!" He snickered. Then rose to his feet, and looked at the other high ranking officials. "Well, shall we have something to eat then?…….Guess we ran a little late tonight!" he laughed as did the others, leaving the broken and battered heap of flesh to be cleaned up by a handful of solders and a doctor.

"My God!………Alright,….. You…., remove those electrodes and try to stop the bleeding from that area……..Are those,……are those burns or whip lashes?" The doctor felt a wave of nausea as he looked down upon the badly mis-treated body of the young man.

"Both,……electrical whip." A solder shrugged nonchalantly.

"Why didn't they just kill him?" The doctor whispered softly as he removed the ball gag from the mutant's mouth, causing the young man to release a mumbled moan that broke into a whimper. Suddenly the doctor realized that he was not treating a mutant, some evil creature with no heart or soul. The tortured body lying in his arms was a person, a human being capable of love and hate, of good and bad. And just like that, the mutant vs. human issue stopped being black and white and started showing the whole spectrum of color. The doctor swallowed hard as tears of guilt and remorse appeared in his eyes. What had he been thinking?

Hours later or perhaps even days, Remy opened his eyes as conscious thought slowly took hold of his mind. Pain was the first thing he sensed and it out weighed any and all other thoughts for at least 20 minutes until he could finally think with the pain. It was every were and every thing, pain! Hot, stinging, throbbing, piercing, numbing, freezing, blinding pain, that threatened to swallow him whole. He tried to fight back the tears that pooled in his eyes, but found he couldn't so he let them flow, silently cursing his weakness. Then in an effort to move, a whimper was released, then another, until he was crying, not loud but enough for his busted bottom lip to quiver and a helpless sound to emanate from his throat. Remy felt utterly beaten, starved and exhausted, finding no relief in his dreams he lay in his cot with his eyes half open wishing he were dead.

Foot steps echoed in the hall way and Remy's breath caught, feeling a sense of fear he normally was strong enough to over power, but in this state it only served to increase his cries as he desperately fought back against the over whelming tears. The cell door opened and the young guard that had bandaged his wrists earlier appeared, kneeling down next to him. He looked over the exposed mutant in horror at what had been done to him. He felt sympathy for the young man and disgust at what he had been subjected to. Gambit had some how gained control over his emotions and was now eyeing the young guard suspiciously, tears still staining his cheeks. Once again the guard's blue eyes met with his own and a feeling of need took hold. How badly he craved human affection, the feel of gentle, loving hands embracing him, holding him. Even with out the empathy, he needed touch like a drug, and he would have done any thing to get it. Another tear escaped his eyes as the guard reached out to touch him. Instinctively he flinched away, mimicking the sound of an injured animal. The guard stopped, pulled back, then set his hand on Remy's face, letting his thumb wipe away the tears.

"I,…….I'm sorry…….I know it must hurt something awful!……..The General wont let the doctor give you any pain killers…….Would,……would you like a blanket?" His voice cracked as he fought back his own guilt and remorse. Remy opened his mouth to speak but found it to painful, nodding instead. The guard offered a weak smile and stood up, locking the cell behind him.

Gambit again fought back the urge to cry, forcing his tears away. He had to be strong, he had to hold on. They would come for him, he knew, they promised. Rouge said she would never abandon him again, she loved him. But it hurt so bad, and he was so alone. The word flashed though his mind, as it had a hundred times the day before. He had said the word that day, had screamed it repeatedly but, with the ball gag in his mouth the word was no more then a vague, incomprehensible cry, and the mind swipe lay dormant just out of his reach. He swallowed hard as his decision was made, he needed to escape this pain, even if it was only his mind running away and leaving his body to take the heat. It was a cowardly thing to do, but at the moment he didn't care. At the moment he would have sold his soul to the devil to escape this reality.

The guard walked back in, laying the blanket over Gambit's batter form. He rose to leave but Remy raised his bound hands together, gripping his sleeve. The guard looked down startled at the weak mutant and saw the desperation in his eyes.

"Si Vous Plate!" Remy coughed, his vocal cords strained from screaming. "Please tell mon amies dat I'm sorry!………Dat I had to get away!" His whispered voice broke into a sob as the confused young solder stared down at him. With a final heavy sigh, Remy looked to the ceiling and let go. He whispered the word under his breath and just like that, he was gone, buried far away beneath all the pain and fear, taking every thing with him until their was only blackness.

The solder's eyes grew as he saw the glow of the mutant's red eyes become faded and dull, his breathing slower, his face becoming emotionless. His body became limp and he looked dead, except for the deep unconscious breathing. Cautiously, Copper nudged the mutant's body, then a little harder, still getting no response. What just happened? Feeling a serge of panic, the guard ran out of the cell to tell the doctor, leaving the comatose man in his cage.

………………………………...

Most of the X-Men had just returned to Camelot after a successful rescue mission, when they felt the Professor's weary voice in their heads.

Welcome back my X-Men. I am glad you are all accounted for. Please meet me in section A/B lounge. Thank you.

As they piled in to the plainly decorated but comfortable room, every one exchanged glances at one another before sitting down. Section A was their home with in Camelot shared with Excalibur, complete with lounge, kitchen, workout room, laboratory and bedrooms. The kitchen, lounge and work out room was all shared with section B, that housed X-Factor and X-Force, whose members were already there. As they took their seats, exchanging nods and hand shakes, Magneto entered, accompanied by Mystique, sending a slightly uncomfortable vibe through the room. They were fallowed by Banshee and the White Queen, who lived in section C with Gen. X. The Professor cleared his throat, drawling every ones attention.

"Yesterday morning, I awoke from a hellish dream, an empathetic cry that pierced the Astral Plane. It was too brief to track down it's origin, but was incredibly strong. The cry was composed of graphically violent images and a sensation of pain and agony, the likes of which, I have never experienced before." He paused, for a moment, sighing as he dropped the other hammer. "I believe this cry was an unconscious plea from Gambit, though I am uncertain of his whereabouts. He is in great distress and I feel it is urgent that we locate him, before……." His voice trailed off. A soft sob filled the silence as Rouge buried her face in her hands, Storm wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulder. The young women was wrapped in her lover's trench coat, still strongly scented with tobacco and French cologne, but his masculine musk was strongest of all. She wore it on every rescue mission, hopping that when she found him, she could place it back on his handsome broad shoulders where it belonged. Even at night she wrapped her self in it, pretending It was his arms around her and not her own.

"Shh child. At least we know he is alive." Storm's own voice was filled with tears and she rocked the younger women in her arms.

"Professor,…..are you certain that the cry was from Remy,……..Is he an Empapath?" Jean asked in subdued shock.

"Yes Jean, I'm almost positive. I had suspected that our young Cajun was an Empapath from the moment I met him. It is the source of his 'charm power' as he calls it and enables him to read people's emotions in such an uncanny way. Though in general he chooses to ignore it, probably due to inadequate training when it first developed. That is why his psi- shields are so strong, to barricade him self from what must feel like a title wave of emotions……..…I had not considered what the mind sweep would do to his shields." The Professor frowned.

"Can you tell if he has activated it yet?" Psylock asked in curiosity.

"No, I can't,……but it would surprise me if he hasn't ." Charles sighed. "Remy may be a proud and stubborn man,……..but there is only so much pain one can take."

"There are only three more prisons listed……..If we recruit more people we can hit all three by the end of next week." Cable suggested, stroking his chin.

"I'm afraid we will not find him in one of the prisons." Xavier explained.

"Then were would you have us look Charles?" Magneto asked in earnest. They were all staring at him, waiting for his great plane, but he didn't have one. In fact, he hadn't the slightest idea were Gambit was other then some where in North America.

"Ummmm………Excuse me,….Professor,……I think you should hear this!" Jubilee stood in the door way with her arm around a young, mousey brunette, who eyed the group nervously.

"Sarah,…….do you have something to tell us?".…….….Emma Frost's voice was gentle and calm as she approached the young girl who had, until a few weeks ago, spent her entire life in a government research center. As the girls nervousness increased, a strange buzzing, like static from a radio could be heard. The girl's mutation enabled her to receive and transmit radio signals, like a human walky-talky. She was also able to record audio from the frequency's she picked up, then later play them by opening her mouth. Emma set a hand on the girls other shoulder, and let comforting thoughts wash over her, relaxing her.

"Go ahead lasse,……we wont bite." Banshee smiled.

"I,…….I over heard two men,…….they talked of the one with Red eyes,……..the one called Gambit.' She kept her eyes to the ground as she spoke, still buzzing off and on. Rouge's head shoot up at his name, but Xavier held up his hand for them to remain silent.

"Yes my dear,….please go on." Charles said with a comforting smile, biting back his urgency.

"Can you play for us what you heard?" Emma suggested. The girl nodded, and closed her eyes, then opened her mouth allowing static to fill the air waves. A moment later, they heard the voices of two men.

"So Sir, where are you headed after here?"

"I'll need to make a quick stop in Atlanta, to asses the damage done to our mutant containment facility down there."

"Was there another attack?"

"Yes, and the Pentagon is not pleased. Damn paper pushing, bureaucratic pussies!……Every time we hit a minor set back, the higher ups threaten to pull the plug on the whole operation!. They have the God Damn liberal press spilling top secret information, and mutant rights activists calling it a government conspiracy!…….These people have no idea of the threat these freaks pose to America and the world at large!……If I had it my way, I'd destroy every last one of em!"

"Sir, I don't understand how so much information got out?"

"I'll tell you how!…..The same way the targets managed to escape just before we closed in during the initial operation! The same way the mutant terrorists know were are hidden bases are, and the prisons!…….The whole mission was spoiled by one man, one fucking freak, managed to sabotage years worth of planning!…….And when I get back to North Dakota, he's going to beg me for death! Up until now, his pain will seem like a pleasant dream, compared to the night mare I have in store for him. Mark my words Lieutenant, I'll wipe that smug grin off his face and make him whimper like the dog he is, that they all are!"

"Sir, are you talking about…."

"GAMBIT!…………The only X-Man we have in custody!…….Ready the chopper!…….Lieutenant Peters!"

"General!" The frequency died, and the girl closed her mouth and hid her face in Jubilee's shoulder, who was biting her lip, with tears in her eyes. Each person shifted in their seats, some shaking with rage, others with fear. And some just hung their heads in despair. The Professor moved closer to the girl, taking her hand in his.

"Darline,….….do you remember any thing else the men said." She lowered her eyes again and shook her head.

"That's alright my dear,…….you have been very helpful!………Jubilee, please take her back to her room,……thank you." Once the two girls left, he turned to face the others, knowing what would come next.

"The Cajun ain't a dog tah get beat!…….. He's in North Dakota!………Fine!……..Lets go get 'em!" Wolverine growled, cracking his knuckles.

"I believe we should start by systematically destroying each government base located in the state. That way they will not remove him from one to another." Magneto stated.

"But then they'll know we're coming and they may relocate him to another region entirely." Cyclops mused.

"It don't matter how we do it,….as long as Remy's still in one piece, cause I swear to God,…….when I find that General,……..I 'm gonna show him the real meaning of pain,….till HE begs for death,……then I'll let Remy have 'em!" Rouge's voice was cold and sharp, her fists clenched.

"What if the base is top secret, or under ground?……..It is possible, the base is not on the list we received." Bishop asked.

"Bishop has a good point. It's easy enough to hack into the government's data base, but there are some things, like hidden military bases, that will not be listed as such. They will be coded as one thing or another, and……I'm afraid decoding any and all files containing information on the Dakotas will take some time." Beast sighed.

"And time is one thing we don't have!……If this General character knows Gambit's the one who warned us,……it's only a matter of time till he.….."Havoc stopped when he saw Rouge's emerald eyes, dispirit and filled with dread. The Professor sighed.

"It is late,….and I'm sure your all exhausted. Let us reconvene here tomorrow morning, and plane our strategy. It is too late to do it now." He turned to leave but was stopped by an angry Southern Bell.

"NO!…….You heard what the girl said!…..You even felt his pain your self!……We can't just go to bed when he's out there some where getting tortured!…….We can't just leave him there!" Her voice broke into a sob The Professor reached out to her as Bobby stood behind her holding her shoulders.

"Rouge,…..we will find him and bring him home. Then he will be safe in you're arms. Soon child, soon." The Professor sent her sedative thoughts, allowing her to ease into sleep as she lay limp in Bobby's arms. He scooped up sleeping beauty and walked out the door. The Professor turned back to their troubled expressions. "Tomorrow we shall begin are search for Remy,………He will be rescued from what ever hell he has been imprisoned and we shall help him mend and heal and become the man he once was." He turned again to go.

"And the General?" Storms words were fiercely powerful.

"The X-men are not about revenge,……but I trust justice will be served!"


	4. Chapter 4

Authors note: Ok, So I can't spell cuz I am dyslexic. I do use Spell Check but that only goes so far. I haven't really found any one to read it over. I know there are betas or whatever but I am just getting the hang of this posting business. Anyway, I am sorry if the errors are too distracting for you but just pretend the author is poor at English and then you'll be kind of impressed!

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It had been more then two weeks since the red eyed mutant had stopped responding to any and all stimuli, even the most painful. The doctors had clamed he was in some form of self educed coma and could not be forced out of it. However the General was convince he was faking it and so went about in his own sadistic ways, trying to get a reaction from the living corpse. The doctor had placed bandages over Gambit's eyes keeping them close so they wouldn't dry out from lack of blinking. And when finally the General had grown beyond frustrated, he ordered the body of his prisoner to be shoved in a strait jacket, gagged, shackled, and dumped in a dark, black storage area, much cooler in temperature then the rest of the building. The Generals thought was out of sight, out of mind, and it worked, for a couple of days, especially with all the head aces he had to worry about coming from congress and their refusal to afford his out fit with any more funding, claming that the mission had been an utter failure and waste of money. It wasn't until rumors spread that an army of mutants was in the process of locating their fallen hero, that his attention shifted back to Remy. He was concerned that they were getting to close, he actually thought of just killing the mutie, but then decided against it. Perhaps he could use him as bate, and capture the rest of the X-Men. Then congress would re-appraise the work of his operation, and may offer him the funding he needed.

These great aspirations were soon foiled however as the day arrived, when the United Mutant Liberation Force came blasting threw the doors of the top secret base, with only one agenda, find Gambit! There were mutants all over the place, rounding up guards and searching every room and cell for their lost comrade. A handful of guards had been rounded up into what was once Gambit's cell. They were held their by Wofsbane, Multiple man and Syren, who patiently waited for Wolverine, who demanded to be the one asking the questions. He entered with Cyclops, Havoc, Domono and Storm, the others still searching for Gambit or battling the guards. Wolverine gave a sort sniff, then drew his claws with a growl.

"Easy Logan!" Cyclops whispered as he set a hand on the other's shoulder.

"The Cajun was in here!……..I can smell 'em!…..His blood, his sweat, his tears!" The short but fierce man stocked up to the closest guard and let two of his claws slowly slide out until they stopped just before grazing the man's eyes. The room grew completely silent as they all held their breaths. If he had blinked, his eyelids would have been cut. "Ok BUB!...I'm only gonna ask ya once, where's Gambit!" His voice was a low growl of anger but his body and arm were motionless. The other mutants each glanced to one another with looks of uncertainty, but remained silent. As expected, no one answered, so Wolverine let his claws drop down to the man's crouch, piercing threw the fabric. "Either one of ya tell me where he is,…….or I'll slice the balls off of every single one of you shit heads, then ask again!" He growled louder, prepared to carry out the threat. Gambit was an X-Man and a good friend, one of the best fighters he had ever met and could have handled all of these guys even on a sick day, but they had used their advantage to dominated him. He could smell the stench of Remy's fear and hopelessness, and the severe odor of humiliation and vulnerability. After another moment of silence a young guard spoke up, his eyes cast down to the side, filled with turmoil.

"He's in a storage room." The young soldier's words where whispered. Instantly the guard next to him elbowed him in the face braking his noise.

"Fucking coward!" The guard spat venomously before being restrained by Havoc and Storm. Wolverine released his grip on the other soldier and walked over to the restrained man. He looked at him questionably, than sniffed, his eyes growing wide.

"You got off on his pain." His tone was brimming with anger and disgust. He grabbed the man by his uniform slamming him into the wall. Storm and Havoc backed away, knowing to stand clear when Wolverine was in such a state. The soldier could not hide his contempt and sneered at the shorter man.

"Yhea, …….and?" His flippant remark was answered by a growl and another hard slam against the wall. Logan looked into his eyes, searching, and becoming more enraged by what he knew was true. He leaned in and growled a whisper that only the trapped man could here.

"You wanted to fuck him……..Well,…..FUCK YOU!" He screamed as he thrust his claws into the guard's abdomen, snarling as he watched him gasp.

"Wolverine!" Cyclops's voice boomed, but before he could say another word the other guards with the exception of the younger one, tried to fight back and where immediately restrained by the mutants in the room. After the momentary chaos, Wolverine turned his attention to the young guard with the broken noise.

"Ya got a name kid?" Logan was once more in control of himself but could easily fly off into another rage any second.

"Cooper, sir." The solder said quietly, shaking slightly.

"Well, Cooper,…ya been real helpful this far,……take us to where Gambit is and you get to see tomorrow unlike yer friends here." Logan snarled.

"Cooper you fucking rat bastered!……..Keep yer trap shut!" One of the other guards threatened. He was quickly pounded by three sets of fists as Multiple man felt the need to shut him up.

"Don' yo listen to him now ladie!……..It's obvious you are none to found of yer job here or the people in it………..Think with yer conscience for a change, not with your fear and bigotry." Syrin said in a soft but firm voice.

Cooper nodded still holding his noise, blood trickling threw his fingers

"Syrin, Wofsbane, Multiple Man and Domono, you stay here and keep your eyes on the guards!………Havoc,……Go find Beast and Jean, tell them we found him!" Cyclops turned to go with Storm and Wolverine right behind him, dragging Copper roughly.

"Scott!……….What about Rouge?" Havoc asked quietly. Scott stopped and looked back, every one's face held the same expression of hesitation and worry.

"If you see her,……….then tell her, but don't go looking for her. Better she find the General then Gambit!" He turned and in a voice that promised death, said, "Let us hope for your sake that Gambit is fine,…….because if he's not,………So help me you will each pay dearly for it!" With that they were gone, and the soldiers were left with the fear of knowing exactly what condition the mutants would find their friend in.

Copper led them to the storage room and punched in the code for the door. Jean and Beast arrived and in the next few seconds, Psylock and Arc Angle were there too. They all held there breath as the door slid open, and light from the hall way pierced the blackness of the small, cool room. Lying on the floor, looking more dead then alive was a skeleton of the man known as Gambit. He was blind folded with a ball gag in his mouth. He had grown so thin that the Strait jacket was actually too lose, and his tattered cotton pants were stiff with cold from the frigid air of the room. Ankles still shackled and the collar was a lose ring around his neck.

They all stood frozen in place by the sight of their team mate, so helpless and utterly defeated. Something inside Logan began to growl as his senses went into over drive. The shallow breaths and uneven heart beat became unbearably loud and the stench of a neglected body with Cajun spice, was suffocating. He felt sick and angry with disgust over the condition of his friend. Suddenly his mind snapped from human to beast and a roar of rage was released as he ran back threw the door and down the hall almost slashing Beast and Betsey as he went. One of his pack had been maimed and humiliated, that was just as bad as killing him. The General was the leader of the other pack, and the target of the Wolverine's vengeance.

They hesitated a moment longer before snapping into action, Beast was at his friends side in a mater of seconds, fallowed by Storm and Jean. Cyclops was yelling into his com badge to warn the others that Wolverine had gone feral and Arc Angle held onto the young guard. Beast carefully gather Remy in his arms, tears in his eyes as he felt the skeleton he was holding. Storm removed the ball gage and cried with compassion and outrage as she tossed it away. Jean used her telepathy to find him but was not surprised at the empty barrenness of his mind.

"How long has he been like this?" Jean asked as her firery gazed fixed onto Cooper.

" Couple weeks or so…..…He…… he asked me to tell you,…….He said, he was sorry but that he had to get away." The young guard focused on the mutant's limp body, then looked away with shameful tears at what he had allowed to happen.

"We need to get him to the Blackbird,………his pulse is weak and I fear his body may have been damaged beyond repair." Beast spoke with a professional tone, but could not suppress his emotional tears.

"What should we do with him?" Arc-Angle asked as he shook the guard in his arms, his voice filled with venom.

"Leave him here,……we have no further use of him!" Betsy's tone was equally cruel.

"No!……..He assisted us in finding Gambit, if we leave him here the military will label him a traitor. We owe it to him to keep him alive, at least until we get out of here!" Cyclops decided. " M.L.F……This is Alpha Blue! We have located the captive and accomplished our mission,……Ready the air crafts, take off in five!" He ordered over the com badge.

" Alpha Blue, this is Alpha Red,……that is a negative on departure time,………Wolverine and Rouge are after the General. Other teams are MIA. Request departure time be delayed until all of M.L.F is accounted for!" Cables low, stern voice crackled with static over the com device.

"Request confirmed,…..but hurry it up!…….Gambit is in critical condition!…….All available teams head for departure point, back up for transporting Gambit to Blackbird may be needed!" Cyclops was answered back by several different voices, confirming their comprehension.

Nearly twenty minutes later, they were ready for lift off. Beast had removed the bindings on Gambit and laid him out on a stretcher with an IV and an O2 mask. Remy's eyes were half opened, dull and glazed over, like those of a dead man. His skin was pale and covered with burns, bruises and lacerations. Bishop stood guard, keeping the others back out of Henry's way, and Night Crawler was asked to look after the young guard, just in case anyone felt particularly vengeful. Each team had brought their own plane for optimum space and fighting ability in case of pursuit and an air strike. Cyclops was busy on the radio, communicating with the other team leaders as the rest of the team filed in. Rouge and Wolverine were among the last to board the jet. Logan had blood splattered all over him, and was still on the feral side. He had been escorted back to the plane by Colossus and Cannon ball, who were both invulnerable to his animalistic slashes. Colossus held him tightly as he thrashed his body, roaring like a lion trapped. Jean went about tending to his mental state while Storm and the others tried their best to console Rouge who was desperate to see her retrieved lover.

"Rouge, please calm down!" Pyslock spoke calmly, but held her distressed team mate at arms length with a psychic restraint.

"DON'T YA TELL ME TAH CALM DOWN!……REMY, REMY!….WHERE IS HE? LET ME SEE HIM!" Her eyes were frantic and her voice pleading as tears streaked down her cheeks.

"We have him Rouge but he needs medical attention. You can see him when……." Bobby was cut off by her panicked cry.

"WHY? WHATS WRONG WITH HIM?…….IS HE OK?……..OH, PLEASE,PLEASE.PLEASE, GOD, PLEASE!" She began to sob and fought harder to see him. "Let me go!……..REMY?…..REMY!" She cried in distress.

"By the Goddess child!" Storm smacked Rouge hard across the face, silencing the young women. Rouge's jaw dropped as she looked at Ororo in shock. Storm too was crying as she wrapped her arms around Rouge embracing her in a hug. "I too am concerned for Remy, but we must remain calm……..We must be strong." She sobbed, tightening her grasp on the southern bell. Rouge returned the hug and held Storm as they let their tears rain on each other's shoulders.

"Ah'm sorry ya'll! Ah just,…….can I just look in at em'?…….Please?……I just wanna see his face…….Just wanna know he's alive!" She pulled away, eyes pleading with a shaky voice. They looked to one another, than nodded. Bishop pulled back the curtain separating them from Hank and Remy. Rouge stepped up and stood next to Bishop, the rest peered over her shoulder.

Beast didn't seem to notice as he was fully occupied with the well being of his patient. He was preparing a needle of something and was muttering some medical gibberish. Rouge gasped as her heart sank, staring into the lifeless eyes of her lover. He's dead! That was the last thought in her mind before she passed out, falling into Arc-Angles arms. He gently sat her in one of the chairs as they all slumped into their seats, sharing silent communication though fearful eyes. The jet was in the air and moving fast as Wolverine finally regained his senses, anomalistic sounds of rage giving way to human pain and anger. Colossus at last released him as he heaved a distressed but rational sigh. Jean collapsed into her chair only to rise once more as Beast summoned her to the back, claming to need her assistance. Logan looked at his team mates then spoke in a calm, collected voice.

"Where's Gumbo?" He was answered by a hakf hearted sweep of Warren's arm in Remy's direction. Logan nodded, than looked down at the unconscious Rouge.

"What happened to her?" His voice gruff and unsympathetic.

"She saw Remy,……Couldn't take it!" Bobby's own tone was dreary at best.

"Who's blood?" Was the only thing Psylock could think to say. Logan looked down and shrugged

"Dunno..…….can't remember." He suddenly jerked his head to the side, eyes narrowing as a low growl crept out of his throat. "What the hell is he doing here!" Logan barked as he marched toward Cooper, who had remained silent in the corner, watching the mutants with a cautious curiosity. He sprang to his feet, eyes wide as Wolverine stalked up to him with a menacing, hatful glare in his eyes.

"Mein Frude!……Surly there has been enough blood spilt on Remy's behalf for today!" Kurt stood between his team mate and Cooper, arms outstretched defensively.

"Out of my way elf!…….I got me some questions that this punk's got answers for!" He growled again, unleashing his claws that cause Cooper to flinch.

"Wolverine!………..Back down!……He'll answer our questions with out your threats!………He's cooperated so far, I don't doubt he will continue!" Cyclops left the plane on auto pilot as he approached the men, his tone questioning Cooper as he lay a hand on Logan's shoulder. The young guard swallowed hard then nodded.

"Good……..Now for starters,…….Why did you help us?" Scott sat down and leaned forward intently. They each locked their gaze on the soldier, eyes analyzing his every breath.

"I……..I wanted to help him,……….Gambit, I mean. I tried to help him before, but I didn't know how." He said in a shaky voice.

"If ya wanted to help him so bad, then why didn't you let him escape, instead of letting yer damn General beat em' like a dog?!" Wolverine could hardly suppress his anger. Cooper opened his mouth to speak, then hung his head in shame.

"I…I tried to protect him, tried to ease his pain…….But there wasn't much I could do……He said thank you once, when I bandaged his writs. That was right before the General found out he was the one who hacked into the mission files and warned all the muties,……I mean mutants……….He almost killed him,………..I think it would have been better if he did." Cooper mumbled softly. Wolverine was about to erupt in anger when Storm beat him to it. She flew at him, pinning him against the wall. Eyes white, hair filled with static. Cooper's heart was racing as he felt the electricity running through the weather goddess.

"How dare you say such a thing!………..You have no right to decide the worth of his life………Gambit is a strong, and proud man who has lived though night mares you can't even imagine, and still he treasures life!………Do not think for one moment that he is as weak as you!.…If the roles had been switched, have no doubt that Gambit would have risked his life to help you, or any one else…….A life that is worth ten times your own!" Her voice was cold and bitter and regal. She spoke quietly with hushed anger and when she was done, her hair settled, her eyes cleared and her steady voice broke into a soft sob as she folded into the strong arms of Wolverine, who held her with compassion. It was then that Copper realized that these mutants were more then team mates or even friends, they were a family, and loved each other the way humans did. For the first time he saw them as people instead of some weird hybrid of man. He recognized their love and understood their anguish and pain. More now then ever he felt shame heavy on his shoulders, and wanted desperately to right his wrongs.

"You gonna answer our questions kid?" Logan growled.

"What do you want to know?" He lifted his head and spoke softly as he gazed into their eyes.


	5. Chapter 5

………………………………...

Rouge awoke from the not so gentle nudge of Wolverine, fallowed by a grunt. She opened her eyes and looked up at him realizing they were in her bed room back at Camelot. She sprang to her feet, eyes wide with fear.

"Remy?!" She choked, running to the door. Logan caught her by the arm and spoke in a soft, calm voice.

"Easy Darlin,……it's ok, he's home!……..Beast has him in the med room. Fixing him up,…….you'll see, he'll be as good as new!" Logan seemed more trying to convince him self then her. "Come on, meeting in the lounge." The two X-Men walked together in silence, feeling sick with dread. Every one was already in the room, looking exhausted and worried. Hushed whispers fell silent as they entered, all eyes were on Rouge. She didn't seem to notice or care as she took her seat next to the Professor, Wolverine remained standing. A moment later, a very tired and emotionally distressed Henri Mc Coy entered the tense room, laying back against the wall and removing his glasses as he rubbed his eyes. He let out a sigh that seemed to hurt his heart, before cleaning his glasses and opening his eyes, to gaze upon the small crowd of troubled faces. He smiled weakly, but it offered no assurance.

"Henry?" The Professor spoke in a calm but insistent voice. Beast cleared his throat.

"In all my years……." He began but stopped as a sudden unexpected sob broke free from his throat. This seemed to suck the air from the room, confirming the worst. They knew it was bad, just not how bad. Jean wrapped her arms around the Blue doctor and he smiled at her effort, resting a hand on her own. He sighed and began again. "In all my years as a medical professional,………….I have never seen a human body that has sustained so much damage!" His voice grew in strength as anger gripped his heart. "The pain and suffering he has gone though is simply inconceivable!………How any one could posses such immense cruelty is beyond…….." He shook his head, tears finding their way back to his eyes.

"But you can fix em' right?…….You can make em' better Beast!……..He'll be okay right?……He'll be okay!" Rouge felt the tears in her own eyes and a lump formed in her throat. Beast looked at her with sad, discourage eyes, then away.

"I……I don't even know if he can walk anymore!……….They hurt him so badly Rouge,………If I had the Shiar equipment still, maybe, but…………They have……..he's been tortured." Henry closed his eyes again as the realization of his words began to sink in. Every one in the room was in shock. Wolverine released a cry of anger and punched threw the wall. Every one was silent except for deep sobs and angry grunts.

"There,……..there has to be a way!……..Professor?" Jean looked pleadingly at her mentor with eyes full of tears. He returned her stare with a look of failure and grief.

"I can help heal his mind but not his body." Never before had Charles spoken with such despair.

"There is a way." Magneto spoke in a soft whisper, his gaze hard and fixed on the floor. Every one's attention was on him as he stood in the door way, deep in thought. A look of desperate hope was worn on every face, eyes wide and shining with tears. "There is a mutant,……Jonathan Armos,……..aka, the Surgeon. He has the gift to heal all physical injuries and cure sickness………..However,………..He is currently in Federal Prison, serving a life sentence." Eric looked up at those around him. After a pause, Jubilee spoke up.

"Well we are the United Mutant Liberation Force!…….What are we waiting for? Lets bust him out!"

"It's not that simple Jubilee. If he's in a federal prison, it's not for being a mutant." Cyclops stated with a frown.

"What did he do?" Kitty asked with a gulp.

"He is a serial Rapist with homicidal tendencies, and he has been labeled a sociopath!" The room was filled with sighs grunts and murmurs of what to do. Eric looked directly at Charles to gage his reaction, but the man remained silent, his eyes closed and his chin prompt up by his elbows, resting on folded knuckles.

"I don't care what he is!……If he can help Remy I'll bust em' out my self!" Rouge announced with determination.

"Rouge, we can't be rash here!……….How would it look if the X-Men started freeing mutants guilty of crimes under the law?…..We'd have the Government's attention right back on us!" Cyclops rose his voice in frustration.

"We don't have to go charging in all obvious!………..Night Crawler can teleport in during the night, grab him, he repairs Gambit, we dump him back off before morning! Simple." Bobby clapped his hands.

"Oh,…….and how pray tell do you convince a sociopath to help, "repair" as you so eloquently put it, Gambit?" Mystique raised an eye brow.

"By speaking his language!" Wolverine grinned as three blades popped out of his hands.

"We can't just force some one to use their mutant power! What if he dose It wrong,…….what if he causes him more pain?" Multiple Man commented.

"I assure you,……..it is impossible to inflict any more pain then what has already been done to our dear Cajun comrade." Beast said bitterly, in a tone not commonly heard from the man so found of humor.

"It's worth a shot at least!" Cable shrugged.

"What if he'll only do it in exchange for his freedom. We can't put him back out on the streets!" Wolfsbane asked in mild protest.

"Then we lie to him!……….We tell him we'll set him free after he heals Remy, then we'll send him back instead……….or, I could absorb his power and do it myself." Rouge's voice was hallow and empty, her stare endless.

"Rouge, listen to yourself!……." Before Cyclops could finish Jean spoke up, with the fire of Phoenix in her eyes.

"I would do absolutely any thing in my power to help you Scott!……..Can you not say the same for me?…….If it was one of us in their, would the other not be desperate enough to do anything,……..even brake the law or lie to a rapist?" Jean relaxed a bit as she walked up to her husband and wrapped her self in his embrace. "But Rouge, you mustn't try to absorb his powers because you know that with it comes all the hideous memories and thoughts of a sociopath rapist." Rouge let out a sigh and nodded.

"There,……..there must be another way!" Cyclops stammered.

"Cyclops,……If you do not want the good name of the X-men tarnished, then allow me to form my own team of willing volunteers to extract the Sergeant from his cell and bring him back here." Magneto offered. Scott hesitated, than looked to Xavier for his opinion. All eyes turned to the silent man in the hover chair. Charles rubbed his temples, than sighed. "We must do every thing in our power to help Remy, even if it means sacrificing our honor, for he has sacrificed much more then that for our sake………You are the leader of the X-Men Cyclops,……it is your decision, but if you would like my blessing,……..then you have it." With that said he turned to leave, heading for the med lab, and the X-Men he could not save.

………………………………...

The decision had been made, and a small team consisting of Magneto, Rouge, Wolverine and Shadow Cat were on their way to Tennessee to bring back the mutant known as the Surgeon. Storm was in the med lab with Beast, the Professor and Moria Mctaggert. She stood by a bathtub of warm water and emptied the contents of a small leather pouch into the water. They were healing herbs, given to her by Tantie Mantie on the day she went to tell the voodoo priestess of Remy's capture almost two months ago. They would be good for soothing bruises and burns and helping to clean infectious cuts. But other then loosening sore muscles and calming sprains, the herbs would do little good for his broken bones, torn ligaments or his inflamed organs. There was swelling in his brain, and a fever was reeking havoc on his system. Starvation had broken down his immune system and it was as if his body had given up on healing it's self, over worked and exhausted with just the effort it took to breath and keep his heart beating.

The weather goddess was dressed in a tank top and shorts. Her long hair pulled back. She looked over to Henry and nodded as he gently picked up the comatose Cajun and brought him to her, laying his naked body into the water. Storm and beast helped support his head as Charles handed her a soft wash cloth and some soap that would not sting or irritate his cuts and burns. Ororo gazed down lovingly at her thief brother, a man who she would lay down her life for in an instant as she knew he would do as well. Remy looked so pale and fragile in her arms, covered in filth with scares and wounds of his abuse. His hair was just down to his chin in the front and curled under his ears in the back. Those normally beautiful silky locks were stringy with grease or dreaded and matted with dirt and sweat. She pushed them out of his eyes that were closed and sighed to herself, wondering if this is what he looked like when he was ten and Jean-Luke took him in off the streets. Undernourished and treated like trash, starved for love but terrified to trust any one.

Slowly and with a gentleness of true love, she began to run the warm wash cloth over his battered body, washing away dirt and dried blood as the herbs settled on his skin. Beast had agreed to let her bath Remy because he knew the Cajun would not mind. Often they spoke of their closeness and referred to each other as siblings. When first hearing that the Cajun sometimes crawled into her bed at night he was puzzled and a little disconcerted, but after talking to Storm about it, she explained about his need to touch, his need to feel a body next to his. It was a comfort to him and helped deter his nightmares, of which he had many. She had also told the doctor, in confidence, that she would rather let him climb in bed with her to feel safe, then into the bed of a stranger. It was true he was a sexual being, but sometimes he did it just to be close to some one, just so he didn't have to sleep alone. This idea sadden Henry but he promised not to bring it up with Gambit or any one else. He often wondered if the root of this need for physical contact was stemmed from a childhood spent alone and desperate for affection, but finding it only in the cruelest and most deprived ways. Henry had only asked Remy once about his scares, the ones in places no one but a doctor would see. His question was met with a stone wall, constructed to hid Remy's shame and humiliation. He knew, as did Wolverine, Storm and a few others, that Gambit's sexual preference was a bit more flexible then others, but scares like the one's Remy hid, were much to old for one so young, and were more then skin deep.

Moria placed a comforting hand on Xavier's shoulder as he watched his X-Men tend to their injured team mate.

"It'll be ok Charles…….The boy is strong, he'll pull through." She whispered softly. He set his own hand on hers.

"They always do." He answered in a calm but sad voice. Moria left his side as she handed Storm the Johnson's baby wash shampoo. There was a sudden knock at the door and Beast lay a towel over the tub to cover Remy's lower body as Moria opened the door. Boom Boom was on the other side waiting as the door slid open, she opened her mouth to speak when the sight of the Uncounsious X-men caught her eye. Like many of the others, she had not yet seen him, and even from the door way she gulped as her jaw drooped.

"What,…….what are those marks on his back and torso?" She asked in a small voice. Storm Wrapped Remy in a tighter embrace defensively as Beast rose with a sigh.

"They are electric wipe lashes Samantha,………is their something you came to tell us?" She kept her eyes locked on Gambit, unable to look away. Moria set a hand on her shoulder and used the other to guide the girls face back to her own.

"Samantha?" She gulped again then spoke.

"Their back,………the Surgeon is with them in the lounge waiting……….You might want to hurry cuze Wolverine's having trouble restraining Rouge." With that she bolted out the door and far away from the image of the broken man in the tub.

………………………………...

Xavier entered the crowded lounge where a large, balding man, with thick arms sat hand cuffed and blind folded with a smirk on his sleazy lips. Magneto was holding onto Rouge as fire shot from her eyes at the prison inmate. The other women were all equally furious and the men looked ready to kill. Wolverine stood next to the man with one hand gripping his thinning hair. He was growling something low into his ear, and was shaking in anger. Charles felt overwhelmed by the negativity of the room and had to take a cleansing breath before going any further. Wolverine backed away, releasing the man's hair roughly. Charles cocked an eyebrow at Logan who just gave him a weary look. Charles cleared his throat as he began to speak to the man.

"Hello Mr. Armios,……..I am sure you know why you have been brought here." His tone was polite but cold.

"Yhea, I fucking know!….Ya want me tah use my powers on yer friend. Kiss his boo boo's and make em' feel all better!……Well what I want to know is,….what's in it fer me?!" He grumbled.

"I suppose the satisfaction of knowing you've helped some one is not enough?" Xavier sighed. To which the man laughed, causing every one to shift uncomfortably.

"What the hell kinda satisfaction is that?……….I'll tell ya what would satisfy me,…….…shoving my cock inta that little striped hair bitch's pussy till she screams like a whore!" He licked his lips and fluttered his tongue as Rouge screamed in rage.

"I'll make you scream you fucking pig!" She hollered as Colossus helped Magneto restrain the southern bell. Wolverine had one hand gripping the man's throat and the other was balled in a fist, claws out and ready to strike. Xavier quickly took control of the situation by freezing both Rouge and Wolverine in place, then mentally shutting down their minds until they fell asleep. Cyclops and Havoc picked up Logan and set him on the couch with Rouge. The room was filled with mumbles and angry tension, as the Sergeant regained his breath once Wolverine's vice grip was released from his throat.

"Mother Fucker could have crushed my wind pip!" He shouted angrily.

"We should have let him!" Jubilee scowled. The Professor held up a hand to silence them all, as he refocused his attention on the man.

"Mr. Amois,……..I can not and will not offer you any compensation or payment for your services other then a good meal before you return home."

"If by home you mean that fucking prison cell, then you can forget it!…………..I ain't going back!.…Not when there's' plenty of nice pussy right here!……You want me tah fix up yer buddy, then I'm staying here!" He grinned, his gray crooked teeth showing.

"I'm afraid that cannot be arranged.……You will either help us on your own account,……..or I will gain control of you mentally, and work through you!" Charles voice was deadly serious and the others all looked at him in shock. He knew that by forcing the Surgeon mentally, he would be braking the oath he swore never to invade a person's mind uninvited. All the telepaths in the room looked at one another in slight disbelief, but understood his decision. The Surgeon was silent for a moment in contemplation, then he spoke.

"Fine!……I'll help your fucking friend, but I better get the best damn meal I'm ever gonna eat!" He huffed angrily.

………………………………...

Storm and Beast had just dried off Remy, when the Professor telepathically asked if they were ready for the Surgeon .

In a moment please Professor, let us cover him up. Storm answered. They lay his limp, beaten body on the bed, and placed a thin sheet over his lower body. Charles entered with the man, still handcuffed and blind folded. With them was Logan, Rouge, Scott and Jean, the others had been asked not to come, as the room was to small to accommodate them all, and only those very close with Remy should be there. Iceman, Psylock and Arc-Angle waited out side the room, and Shadow cat, Bishop, Night Crawler, and Collousus, were just down the hall. Jubilee was the only one who protested not being allowed in, but Wolverine promised her that he would sneak her in later.

Rouge's eyes filled with tears as she gazed down at the man she loved, wanting so badly to hold him tight and tell him it was almost over, even if it wasn't. The Professor had already explained to them all, that once Remy's body was fixed, and the Professor brought him out of his unconscious state, his mind would still need time to recover and he would not be him self for a long time. Yet still she hoped, that he would just open his eyes and call out to her, remembering all the good and forgetting all the bad, but she knew that was only a dream. Cyclops unlocked the hand cuffs as Jean removed the blind fold.

"About Fucking ti………..HOLLY SHIT!………What the hell happened to this poor fucker!" The Surgeon's jaw dropped as he looked in disgust at the thin, broken man on the bed. He walked closer to the bed as Wolverine grabbed his wrist instinctively protective of his injured friend. "Look I gotta put my hands on him to heal em' up!……So back off fuzzy or the deals off!" Wolverine released the man with a low growl, warning him.

"He was held and interrogated at a Military base for about two months." Charles spoke calmly answering the Surgeon's first question.

"Got news for you Mr. Clean,……this kid wasn't interrogated,…….he was fucking tortured!……I mean, Jesus,………look at him!……….I ain't seen nothing like it, and I've seen a lot!…………Healed up this poor bastered once after the mob got done with him,…….fixed every thing but his dick,…….got cut off and his bitch couldn't find it no were……….But damn,……..this guy got fucked up!" He was standing over Gambit now with an expression composed of both amusement, shock and maybe a little compassion. "Bet this guy was a real looker, ehe?" He laughed as he looked up at Rouge. "Good thing he ain't in prison or he'd have every guy on his block punking out his ass,…….including me!" He laughed again, but stopped when he felt three claws press against the side of his neck.

"Gambit ain't nobody's punk!………Shut yer trap and heal him or I'll slice that pretty head off…….Got it!?" Logan growled again. The Surgeon gulped and nodded before placing both hands on Remy's chest. He closed his eyes and concentrated as those around him held their breath. Slowly the thick red burns and lashes on his chest began to fade as the unsettling sound of bones mending echoed through his rib cage. Scares and bruises started to shirk, while his body filled out slightly, enough for him to look too skinny but not skeletal. Open gashes closed and torn ligaments and tendons healed. Dislocated joints and shattered bones pieced them selves back together until, the fragile figure on the bed, once again resembled the handsome devil Remy LeBeau. Rouge covered her mouth in a happy shriek and Ororo wrapped her arms with Henry, both smiling with tears in their eyes. The Surgeon stopped and stretched, seemingly exhausted, his breath heavy. There was still more to be done to the lower half of Gambit's body, and he was still burning with fever, but the man was out of practice and was growing weak. He glanced up at Wolverine, who just unleashed one hand of claws and nodded. The Inmate sighed, and grabbed the sheet to pull it down.

Rouge flew forward pushing the man back and covering Remy, her cheeks flushed.

"What in tarnation do ya think yer doing?" She yelled, hovering over Remy defensively.

"Hey,…….I gotta fix up the rest of him, or he ain't gonna be able at walk!…….Knees are torn up and smashed in like piñatas but if that's the way you wanna leave it fine by me! He smirked.

"No, please continue Mr. Armios." The professor nodded as the others turned away to respect Remy's privacy. The Surgeon went back to healing the X-Man. When he was done, only the Cajun's fever remained, but he was too tapped out to fix it, and the others were too desperate to get rid of him that Beast said, he could treat it with antibiotics instead.


	6. Chapter 6

………………………………...

It was two days later when the Professor and Beast final agreed that it was time to wake up Gambit. Charles had resisted the pleas of his X-Men, dreading the unknown state of Remy's mind and the strength of his shields. There was also some concern that his fever had not subsided, but Henry felt that with some proper nourishment from solid foods, his immune system would build up and be better able to fight off the sickness. Charles, and the other telepaths were all in the med lab with Remy, prepared for anything. Beast and Storm were in the back, and out side, in the hall way the some of the other X-Men, all anxiously awaiting to see him. Rouge was right out side the door, angry that they would not let her in, despite Xavier's completely reasonable explanation. He told them all that it was quit possible that Remy's shields had been destroyed by the mind sweep and that their emotions would feel like an avalanche to his empathy, threatening to crush him. He would, no doubt not be in control of his own emotions and so would project them to every one. His fear and confusion would drive those around him insane, and would only hurt his fragile mind. Rouge knew and accepted this, but still, wanted desperately to be there by his side.

The southern bell paced out side the med lab, wrapped up in Remy's coat. She leaned back against the wall, sighing as she closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. Rouge was deep in thought when Jubilee walked up to her, a question in her eyes working it's way to her tongue.

"Um,……….So,…..How are you doing?" The teen asked joining Rouge against the wall, staring at her feet.

"Fine Shuga,……….you?" She spoke with a sigh and a weary smile. Jubelee nodded, then shifted her weight back and forth.

"Things will be different now,…….now that you have control over your powers." The two females looked up at each other. It was Rouges turn to nod.

"I hope so at least………….It's so strange how it all went down getting zapped by that power suppresser gun a month back during our prison brake in New Mexico. But,……. Maybe now we can have a real relationship like other people……….That is….if he can recover from what he's been through." She swallowed hard biting back the tears that welled up every time she thought about it.

"It's kinda sad but,………if none of this ever happened, I mean, If the government never came after us, and we never formed the United Mutant Liberation Force,………..then you wouldn't have gotten hit by that gun and learned to control your powers." Jubilee set a hand on Rouges shoulder as she shook her head, eyes closed. After a moment she stood up strait and locked eyes with the teen once more.

"I would rather live with out touch and have spared Remy from this hell, than be able to hug and kiss his scares." She turned away heading out side for some fresh air.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

Inside the med lab the telepaths gathered around the unconscious man, preparing for the journey into his mind.

Our we ready? The Professor communicated to his fellow telepaths with out opening his mouth. One by one they each answered yes, as the link was forged. Remember, we want to bring him out slowly, at a pace he is comfortable with………….Do not confront him,……….just open the doors for him and lead him back to consciousness…… The Professor's voice became less defined as they gently drifted into the darkness of Remy's mind. Jean was the first to arrive, then Psylock and the White Queen, fallowed by Charles. The dark blankness of Gambit's mind was cold and lonely, but to Charles surprise they could here the beeping of the monitors and the gentle whispers of Hank and Ororo.

Xavier,…...if he can here them now,……….has he heard everything else since becoming comatose? Emma Frost asked.

And will he remember it once he wakes up? Psylock added.

I cannot be sure, but it is a very real possibility." The Professor agreed.

God I hope not! Jean sighed, a feeling of sympathy and anger was suddenly emitted from her, and the telepaths were all amazed as her words crystallized into colorful waves, drifting off into the blackness.

I don't understand! Betsy whispered in astonishment as her words too pored into colors, reflecting her own emotions. More colors pierced the blackness as Charles and Emma added with their own fascination and confusion.

How interesting!…….Unlike our telepathy which picks up thoughts and interprets feelings through words,……Gambit's empathy channels only the raw emotions, and so thoughts filled with emotions become waves of color,……that's how his mind interprets. Xavier was intrigued, having never been inside the mind of an empapath.

I wonder if Remy can see Auras? Jean pondered.

We must make it a point to ask him at a later time! Charles commented. His attention drifted to a small light, far off, were their emotions had pierced the endless blackness. From the small tear, a steady, but weak wave of indigo light pulsed toward them, gently caressing them with a feeling loneliness and confusion. Xavier turned toward the light and focused his feelings of love and compassion, sending a small wave of white and pink light back toward the opening. The others understood what he was doing and sent their own positive emotions out, filling the blackness with a rainbow of warmth. They were answered by an equally strong wave of fear and mistrust, crashing against them with a powerful force.

Hold back,…..We don't want to overwhelm him! Xavier instructed cautiously. He took a breath to steady him self as he sent a more gentle wave of hope and understanding. The tear had grown larger with the constant flow of emotions. As Xavier's wave poured in though the expanding rip, a sudden flood of emotions gushed through the opening, shattering the empty darkness with light. Memories and emotions intertwined as random flashes released a mix of feelings. Confusion and pain, so much pain dominated all else as the telepaths became swept up in the whirl wind of thought that erupted through the Cajun's mind that had lain dormant for weeks.

We must get out before we our selves are over whelmed! Emma gasped as the strength of Remy's pain began to suffocate her. They each grabbed hands as Xavier ripped them from Remy's mind, feeling overwhelmed and disoriented. The telepaths open their eyes, realizing they were once again in their own bodies. But the small room was no longer calm as Beast and Moria were trying to hold down the Cajun's convulsing body as the heart monitor beeped at a frantic pace. Before any one could react, Remy opened his ruby fire eyes and shot out of the bed, and onto the floor. He grabbed his head and let out a cry of pain as his mind felt as if it was ripping apart only to reform. So many emotions, so much noise. He could hear and feel and see and touch and taste the raw essence of those around him and it was making him sick. His blood pounded in his ears and he felt hot and cold all at once. He had to get away, he had to hid away in a dark corner were they couldn't reach him, were his head wouldn't be clouded by mind numbing pain and waves of constant nausea.

No sooner had Gambit opened his eyes, then a sudden gush of fear and pain seized each person in the room, bringing them to their knees. It was as if all their senses had been stripped away, and only chaos remained. They could think, but barley, as the force of Remy's emotions pounded down on them unchecked. The desperate mutant stumbled to his feet and out the door, where a flood of new and even more intense emotions washed over him. The lights were too bright and the voices too many. He almost doubled over from the pain in his skull, as he gagged from the extreme nausea. Through the disorientated confusion in his mind he could feel their hands on him, and it triggered an even greater sense of fear and desperation. He pushed away from the bodies around him and ran. Blindly he ran down the bright white hall way, crashing into the walls as he went, suppressing painful cries through clenched teeth.

The others could do little else then watch him go as they struggled to combat the intense negative feelings that threatened to destroy them all. Rouge and Warren had managed to put their hands on him before crumbling to the floor in shear agony. Once he was out of sight, pain and confusion gradually subsided, and they managed to find their balance once again. The Professor was in the hall way now, along with the others that had been in the room. He was flushed and looked more then slightly shaken as did those around him.

Every one calm down,……I am setting up a temporary shields on Remy's empathy to help him control it and so we shall not be overwhelmed by his emotions or visa versa. The Professor projected to every one in the hall way. He sighed, regaining his composure as he found Remy's location.

"Beast and Jean,…come with me!……The rest of you stay here, we cannot risk another Empathetic release if he becomes overwhelmed." With that said they were once more on the move, searching for their desperate and lethal team mate.

………………………………...

Logan was in the kitchen drinking a beer when he heard the ruckus out in the hall way. He had only waited with the others for about a minute when he decided to take a breather. No sooner had he opened his beer, then the sounds of anguished cries and muffled sobs erupted as voices cried out to Remy. Instantly he was in the hall way only to through himself back into the kitchen as a wave of fear rocked him hard, like a swipe of Sabertooth's claws. He stumbled for a moment, before hearing Chuck's voice in his head. Logan didn't wait to here the orders as he took off down the other side of the hall, sniffing out the Cajun's hiding spot from the stench of terror he left behind. Logan could sense the state of mind the kid was in, and understood it better then most. When ever Wolverine went feral, he acted only on his survival instincts, unable to reason or think, his memories forgotten. Add a mind shattering head ace, two months of torture, and enough confusion and mix of emotions to drive a man insane, and that was about were the Cajun was.

As Logan rounded another corner he bumped into two mutants he didn't know, they looked startled and worried. He didn't bother to speak, just growling instead.

"A man just ran into the main corridor, he was screaming and holding his head." The first spoke.

"We saw he had a X on the shorts he was wearing and figured he came from one of the X-teams." The other added quickly.

"Ya thought right!" Logan answered, increasing his pace to a jog. 'hold on Gumbo, I'm comin!' The thought was determined as were his steps. After weaving his way through the maze of halls he finally stopped short in front of a dark humid room. He opened the door slightly and sniffed, barley making out Gambit's scent among the detergent and fabric softener. The steady beat of the washers and dyers did well to hid the frantic rhythm of his heart, but Wolverine senses were on full alert. As he took a few steps into the room, he could tell Remy was holding his breath.

"Gambit,………it's me, Logan,……don't worry, I ain't gonna hurt ya!" He turned his attention to a pile of dirty cloths on the floor, hidden between a washer and the wall. A small muffled whimper could be heard by only Logan's sensitive ears. Cautiously he approached the pile of cloths, his foot steps soft as if he were sneaking up on an animal, rather then a team mate. He crouched down and slowly pulled apart the heap of cloths until he found a mop of shaggy, soft auburn hair. Logan gently pet the top of the Cajun's head, as if calming a wild dog. Suddenly Remy leapt out of the pile and with a forceful kick knocked Logan back. He scrambled to the door when suddenly it opened letting in blinding light. Gambit fell back and crawled backwards into another corner, eyes shut tight, his finger laced threw his hair as he rocked back and forth, tears spilling down his cheeks.

"Damnit Hank,……..Shut the door!" Logan growled.

"Logan?" Jean asked in surprise.

"Yeah, now close the door or the kid will bolt first chance he gets." Wolverine growled as his bruised ribs began to heal. The Professor entered and they shut the door except for a crack of light to see by. Logan crawled toward the trembling man, who was emitting wave after wave of confusion and fear. "Remy?………..It's ok. Your safe,……. no one is going to hurt you here. Were your family remember? The X-Men." Jean's voice was gentle and soothing as she sent waves of warmth and security toward her anxious team mate. Gambit opened his eyes slightly as he felt the comforting emotions, the words sounded the same, but he couldn't understand them. His head still hurt and he felt sick with fever and nausea, and so desperately tired and hungry, and scared. He swallowed hard as a small cry came from his throatt. He wanted to trust the nice sounding voice, but all he could remember was pain, and anger and fear. He opened his eyes again as he felt the man approaching him.

Logan was on his hands and knees, crawling toward Remy, he stopped and sat up a few feet away. His blue eyes were gentle, and understanding, but strong and safe. He locked his with the Cajun and saw the unmistakable panic is his friends eyes, the uncertainty and the ever present fear all glazed over with fever. With out saying a word, Logan opened his arms, and made a gentle growl, one that offered more then words to the distressed man, huddled on the floor. Gambit was no longer rocking him self and was looking hard at the man in front of him, his burning red eyes peering through long, shabby bangs. The other three in the room waited with baited breath, fingers crossed that it would work. Finally, Remy scooted forward, cautiously approaching the man who did not move. Slowly he leaned into the strong and sturdy torso of Wolverine, resting his head on the mans chest, his arms still folded around himself. Logan gently wrapped his arms around Gambit, feeling the tenseness in his whole body. He held his team mate, using one hand to stroke his bare back as he felt wet tears soaking through his flannel shirt. Gambit was shivering but his skin radiated with heat from sickness.

The animal part of Wolverine felt very protective, wanting to hold his fellow wolf, until he was well enough again to hunt. The human side of Logan just wanted to be there for his team mate and friend and help him recover to become the cocky, arrogant son of a bitch he always was. The only man who would go out riding and drinking with him, who could kick his ass at cards, but graciously lose a few hands any way out of respect for him. The man with a style and flavor all his own, who pissed off one eye almost as much as Logan did. He had missed the Cajun, and now to have him back as a shadow of his former self, was enough to make the mighty Wolverine feel a drop of wetness in his own eyes. He could feel his friends spine, still way to skinny, and he could sense Remy's hunger but knew he was exhausted physically. Should he carry him to the kitchen? Would the others all stare at him, the strong and proud Cajun being carried like a child? The questions nagged at him for an answer.

Logan, why don't you carry him to the med lab instead, or Beast will if you prefer. We shall bring him something to eat. The Professor reached out a mental hand on his shoulder.

"I'll do it Chuck,……..Gumbo seems to be Ok with me." He looked down at the fragile, thin body in his arms and made another soft growl to get his attention. Two feverish, red eyes slowly drifted up to Logan's face, confusion still present but the fear lessening. He looked so young, tears staining his cheeks ,even with the constant five o'clock shadow. "Hank, grab that blanket will ya." Beast handed the soft green blanket to Logan who then wrapped It around the unsteady Cajun. Wolverine tried to pick him up, but he struggled, reluctantly. Logan let out another growl, a little more stern this time, and the weary Cajun went still is his grip, letting him lift him into the air.

As they made it down the hall way, less forceful but consistent waves of pain and nausea mixed with fatigue and confusion came radiating off Gambit like the heat of his fever. He was still shivering from inside the blanket, and his glazed over eyes, clouded with delirium, tried their best to focus on the face of the man carrying him. Logan stared down into those suspicious eyes and smiled, trying to reassure his cognitively impaired friend. When they round the corner of the hall, toward the kitchen, a heard of anxious faces were there, all ready to pounce. Despite the temporary shields the professor placed with in Remy's mind, the sudden increase in emotions, caused panic in the weary Cajun and with an animalistic whimper he flew from his protectors arms and on to the metal floor, still wrapped in the blanket. He crawled to the wall, rocky as he grasped his head. Before Xavier could even speak to tell them all to back up, the nauseating blast of panic sent all those in the hall staggering back, communicating better then words, what they should do. With knowing looks and nods, the majority of the crowd backed away down the hall way and out of sight, as Rouge, Storm and the other X-Men drew nearer, carefully attempting to regulate their emotions. Wolverine was crouched by Remy, stroking his back soothingly through the Blanket. Every one was silent as they listened to the frantic breaths become slower and more relaxed, his rocky gradually coming to a stop as the wordless moans softened.

The fog of foreign emotions began to dissipate and only a few, strong ones remained. Compassion, concern, love and sadness were floating around in his consciousness, over shadowing his instinctual fear and easing the pain and nausea. At last he opened his heavy eyes, and then shut them tight with a whimper of pain. Instantly, Xavier mentally reduced the lights, dimming them to a brightness easily adjustable for Gambit's sensitive eyes.

"It's alright now Remy, you can open your eyes." Charles voice was soft and gentle, as if he were speaking to a frightened child. He opened one eye carefully then another, before glancing around at those who surrounded him. A tingle of intimidation caused him to wrap the blanket tighter around himself as he stared up at the faces circling him. They sensed his apprehension and Scott immediately sat down, slowly, without making any sudden movements. The others fallowed his lead, and the tenseness lessened but still the demonic eyes consumed in fever eyed them with suspicion, darting from side to side.

"At least he is alert." Bishop surmised. Gambit's head snapped in his direction, brow knitted in confusion. The sounds they made were familiar and he thought he knew what they meant but he couldn't comprehend them fully.

"Remy,…….shuga?…….We missed ya!" Rouge was the closet next to Logan. Remy looked at her with vague familiarity, studding her features. Her beautiful emerald eyes were wide with hope and need, but her lip trembled and tears stained her cheeks. He watched her with curiosity. Then slowly brought his hand up to his own face, long fingers touching the wetness on his cheeks then pulling away, startled. He looked down at the shinny wetness on his fingers, then reached out to her with the other hand, shaky, fingers lightly caressing her cheek. She closed her eyes at his butterfly touch, another tear, dripping down her soft skin. Remy let his fingers trace the tear, then brought his hand back, looking down at both sets of wet fingers. His eyes grew wide with surprise and he turned back to Logan, holding out his hands, palms up, with an expression that seemed to ask why. Wolverine couldn't help but chuckle at the kid's amazement and wonder.

"There called tears Gumbo,…….yer eyes leek em' when ya get emotional." A smirk curled on his lips, as Gambit's brow knitted once more in confusion.

"I don't think he understands." Bobby said, slightly puzzled.

"No,…..he dose not. His mind is completely blank, except for his natural instincts. Right now Remy is like a new born, in a man's body, with all of the functional connections already made. We are fortunate for that, or it would take much longer for him to recover his identity. The laborious process of teaching him how to walk and eat,…….not to mention potty training, can be ignored as he is already cognitive aware, it is merely his memories we must recover,……….and it seems his ability to communicate as well." As Xavier spoke, the others watched him with amusement as he explored his body, staring first at his hands, then touching his face, chest and legs. When his hands reached for a more privet area, Logan grasped his hands lightly in a low chuckle.

"Woah there bub,……you can save that for later!" The others smiled and laughed. Causing Remy's expression to lighten until he too was grinning. It was a grin so distinctly Remy, that Rouge gasped in delight, as if seeing a trace of the man she loved, peaking through.

"Are you hungry Remy?……..Would you like some food?" Ororo's smile was soft and warm, and so comforting that Remy's grin faded as he gazed upon her. With out knowing it, he scooted closer to her, analyzing her features, like a child trying to remember the face of a long lost loved one, feeling the emotions with only slight recognition. He looked at her loving gaze, still wet with tears recently shed, and returned it with the innocence of a child. With out warning his stomach rumbled and he looked down in surprise.

"I think that answers that question!" Kitty smiled. "I'll make us some lunch,……can Remy eat with us Professor?" She rose to her feet then bit her lip, eyes pleading.

"Yes, I suppose so,……..Though I was going to have him eat in the med lab. What do you say Doctor Mc Coy?" Charles smiled.

"Well, I guess that's fine, as long as whatever he eats is very bland so as not to upset his stomach!"

"Got it!…….Hey Peter, ya wanna give we a hand?………You too Bobby!" She smiled and entered the kitchen.

"Why do I always get recruited for this kinda stuff?……what do I look like,…a chief?" Bobby grumbled as he fallowed the others.

" Jean, you and Logan take Remy back to the lab and get him dressed in some warmer clothes,……..Rouge, Storm if you would like to accompany them, I can see no harm in it." Xavier smiled.

"Right,……common Gumbo,……..ya look like an old lady with that blanket on ya!"

"We can fix that can't we?" Rouge smiled as she took the blanket off his shoulders and placed on them his beloved Trench coat, glad to see it returned to it's rightful owner. Remy looked up at her with questioning smile and she just stroked his hair and kissed him on the forehead. With Logan on one side, and Rouge on the other, they guided him back to the med lab.

………………………………...

They all sat at the table waiting for Gambit and the others to return. Kitty was just finishing the chicken salad and Peter was pouring every one lemonade.

"Please pour Remy a glass of whole milk instead, He is in dispirit need of nourishment!" Beast smiled at the Russian who nodded.

"He's still too thin but he looks much better then a few days ago." Kurt commented.

"Yeah,….and we have that scum Surgeon to thank for that!" Warren scowled.

"We did what we had too,….what we would do for any one of us!…And that is any thing we can!" Cyclops responded defensively.

"I know Scott, and I think you made the right choice. But men like that make my skin crawl!" Warren frowned in disgust.

"I agree!…….You should have heard some of the things he was saying! There was no way we were going to leave him alone in there with Remy!" Scott sighed.

"Do you think he can digest Chicken salad OK?" Kitty turned toward Beast.

"Only a small amount, ……with dry toast. I'm afraid his stomach has shrunk from starvation, and we need to stretch it slowly so he won't get sick………We shall all have to watch him, and make sure he doesn't over eat,………give his metabolism time to catch up!" Beast answered.

"When do you think is the last time he ate solid food?" Betsy asked.

"According to that young guard we dropped off in Nebraska,……….It was a few days before he went into a coma. A little over three weeks." Beast said with a heavy heart. They grew silent with thought as the Professor entered fallowed by the others. Remy was in sweats, and was leaning heavily on Logan who guided him to a chair. Rouge and Wolverine sat next to him as Storm and Jean took their seats across the table. The Professor sat at the head and cleared his throat to get their attention since they were all staring at Gambit who was slumped in his chair head down, long bangs over shadowing his pale face. He appeared to be in his own world, and was barley aware of those around him.

"I have just spoken to Havoc, Cable and Magneto about Remy's current condition, and they will inform the others." He was interrupted by Bobby who was still staring at Gambit.

"Professor,….what happened? He was alert and responsive like 15 minutes ago, and now he looks wasted or completely out of it!" They looked back to Remy, who had begun to sway in his chair and was moaning softly. Rouge and Logan each rest a hand on his shoulders to steady him.

"I was just getting to that!" He sighed in annoyance. "Remy's mind is going through significant changes, often becoming over whelmed or over stimulated the result of which is his mind slows down, as if drugged, thoughts are fuzzy, and his senses are all jumbled."

"Like a Computer when it's running too many programs, it takes forever to work and then freezes up on you!" Kitty huffed as she set a plate in front of Charles.

"Not exactly, but similar. However there will be other times when his brain is on over drive and he will become board and restless, his body unable to keep up with the rapid pace of his mind. This is what will be most harmful for him, driving him into an autistic state were he may potentially cause harm to him self. These states will fluctuate and will no doubt coincide with the rebuilding of his shields." The professor paused to take a breath, and sip his lemonade. Gambit was now sliding off the chair and onto the floor. Before Wolverine could grab him, the Cajun slipped under the table and began to crawl. They all scooted their chairs back and peered under the table, as Remy curled up by Ororo's legs.

"Heh!…….Well it's nice to see some things don't change!" Logan snickered looking under the table. Xavier seemed unfazed by the peculiar behavior and cleared his throat to regain their attention

"Now, as far as memory recovery, this will be a most complex and trying task." He sighed. " We must trigger these memories by helping him engage in activities that may be familiar or showing him pictures. Once triggered, a title way of memories will flash through his mind, unfortunately, causing him great pain. It will subside eventually depending on how many memories are triggered, and how long it takes his mind to sort them. It will take many of these episodes to recover and organize more then 20 years of memory and then of coarse, he will be emotionally off settled depending on what he remembers. He may even laps back into the mental state of those memories, but again, that too will subside. Eventually the pieces of his mind will be reconnected and Gambit will be whole once again." Xavier smiled, trying to offer reassurance to his X-Men. They contemplated this while they ate, occasionally looking under the table to see what Remy was doing. After a few minutes, Remy crawled over to Rouge and rest his head in her lap. Wrapping his arms around her lower legs. She blushed as she looked down and began stroking his hair.

"Professor?" She looked up and bit her lip, a sudden sadness danced across her face. Gambit felt it strong and held on tighter, nudging her thigh with his head. "Is there a way we can avoid triggering his negative memories? You know, let him forget the most painful ones, the ones that eat at him and won't ever do him no good?" She asked hopeful. He sighed and wiped his lips, then answered.

"I wish it were that easy Rouge!……But he will never be whole if we try to hid parts of his life from him, no matter how bad they were….….I'm sorry." She looked down at the head of auburn hair, rested in her lap and sighed.

"Sorry Shuga,…..looks like yer in for a rough ride!"


	7. Chapter 7

A few weeks had past, and already the Ragin' Cajun was acting more like him self

A few weeks had past, and already the Ragin' Cajun was acting more like him self. The memory recovery was a slow process, due to the amount of pain and stress it caused his mind. The episodes would last any where from a minute to an hour, but always left him tried and disoriented. He would sleep long hours during the day and then be up roaming the base at night, exploring his surroundings and often getting into mischief. One morning the inhabitants of section A/B found small items in their rooms missing. Before to long there was a line of annoyed yet amused mutants patiently waiting out side of the med lab as Storm and Jean persuaded Remy to give back what he stole.

"Gambit, we know you were just practicing your newly recovered skills, but friends don't steal from friends." Jean scolded in a motherly tone. The other X-Men were gathered around the room, trying not to laugh as Remy innocently stared up at the two and shrugged, shacking his head.

"Remy,……..Please?" Ororo asked softly, stroking his hair. He closed his eyes and purred like a cat at the contact. They had all quickly realized after only a few days just how starved for affection Gambit was, despite still being weary of those around him. When ever they wanted him to do some thing, they would stroke or pat, or hug and he would be far less disagreeable. Xavier explained that empathes sense of touch was heightened, helping them pick up on subtle vibes, no doubt invaluable for a thief's intuition. Gambit stared for a long time into Storms knowing eyes, before finally nodding as if knowing she was a fellow thief. He begrudgingly removed the cover of the heating vent and pulled out a pillow case full of watches, jewelry, wallets and a pack of gum that Ororo held up with a cocked eyebrow, to which he sheepishly grinned and shrugged again, still unable to speak.

As they returned the items to their rightful owners every one agreed there was no harm done, and commented on how truly skilled he was, causing the child like X-Men to beam even more with pride.

"And may I ask Misure LeBeau, why you felt the need to steal all 10 pairs of mah gloves and leave me a half eaten bar of chocolate?" Rouge put her bare hands on her hips with an accusing smile. Remy grinned from ear to ear as he reached for her hands. She begrudgingly allowed him to raise each to his lips.

"It seems he enjoys the ability to touch your skin Rouge." Storm smiled. Rouge blushed and brought her hands up to his face.

"Well what kinda girl would I be if I denied a poor boy the pleasure of my touch, specially after so many years. I don't know why I'm still wearing those silly things anyhow, old habit I guess." She smiled and winked at Remy, glade he still had feelings for her.

She had been worried after a minor mishap that occurred within the first few days of his recovery as she tried to help him take a shower. She had been unconscious when Cooper explained to her team mates about the torturous showers Remy had been subjected to. Unknowingly, she forced him to relive the nightmare through memory as she dragged him struggling into the stall. He managed to escape her grip, running naked in a state of panic out the door and down the hall, crashing strait into Multiple Man and Strong Guy. They held him fast as he twisted and fought, his coordination still off, until finally his brain became overwhelmed and crashed, leaving him in the sluggish, drugged out state, unable to think or even move.

Rouge was there a moment later in a bathrobe, towel in hand, wrapping it around his waist in an attempt to make him more decent. The ruckus had roused all those near by and soon they were in the hall way. It was then, after Rouge explained what happened, that she learned from her team mates about the so called, "showers" he had received while in the care of the General. She was consumed by guilt at the thought of her ignorance triggering such a hostile memory, but Jean assured her he had to remember it some time. Rouge tried to assure Remy she meant him no harm, but when he finally awoke from his semi conscious state, he avoided her like the plague, cowering behind Wolverine for protection. However it wasn't long before she won him back over by slipping him some cyan pepper to put on his consistently bland food that was still being monitored by Hank.

She had even snuck him outside the base one night to go flying. The event, though exhilarating had proven to be a bit much for him to take, sending him into an episode of memory recovery, that lasted nearly an hour. Rouge just held him in her arms as he mumbled jiberish through moans and clenched teeth. Eventually the throbbing in his skull was calmed and his thoughts began to clear. When he finally looked up at Rouge he blinked, as if suddenly recognizing her face, then smiled, a warm and comfortable smile, one he greeted her with every time he saw her, as if finally figuring out the first clue to who he was, and knowing she meant a lot to him.

After a few rounds of trial and error, the X-men finally set up a flexible schedule pertaining to Gambit's recovery. He was allowed to sleep in until he awoke, which was usually a little past noon. Eventually he would make his way down to the kitchen, just in time for lunch, were Hank would serve him a prepared meal, stock full of vitamins, minerals, protean and other essentials that would help him build up strength. When the good Doctor wasn't looking, Logan would slip him a few gulps of beer, and occasionally a shot or two, that would generally leave him in a cheery disposition, and more willing to cooperate with Beasts orders. After lunch, he was escorted to Xavier's office, were together with the help of Jean and occasionally the other telepaths, they would work on his vocal skills and the creation of his empathic shields. This would only last for an hour, sometimes less, as Gambit would get frustrated and become unreasonable and irritated, once throwing his chair against the wall, then crumbling to the floor in despair, unable to communicate with those around him. His next stop was to the Gym, with rotating team mates as spotters and motivators. On most days he was ready for the work out after sitting still in front of Xavier for an hour, but sometimes he felt lazy and unmotivated and so instead, they would skip strait to the memory recovery, every day a little different. Each team mate found ways of triggering memories, and then would stay with him, helping him cope. Almost always after wards he would fall asleep, and would be carried or teleported back to his bed in the med lab.

Hours later he would wake back up, sometimes peacefully, sometimes in the midst of a nightmare. He'd eat dinner, sneaking the cyan pepper Rouge gave him when ever he could. Then the rest of the night was up to him, playing cards, watching T.V, or spending time with Ororo in her garden. They had at first attempted to get him in bed by midnight, but soon realized it was nearly impossible to do. Not only was he up half the night prowling the base, but when he did eventually chose to go to bed, it most often was not his own. Almost every X-man thus far had woken in the wee hours of the morning with the strange sensation of being watched. There would be Gambit, with big round eyes, biting his lip, arms wrapped around him self standing in the door way, waiting to be invited in. Like a stray cat, he was not easily shooed away, and so his team mates would begrudged beckon him in and let him curl up under the blankets. He had never once tried anything and kept to the edge of the bed, just comforted by the presence of another being.

The past few nights he hadn't slept at all, nightmares becoming more and more frequent. The Professor said those too would pass, once he excepted them into his conscious as memory instead of pushing it back into his subconscious. None of the X-Men had gone out of their way to trigger negative memories, afraid to cause him pain, but it had happened a few times on accident, leaving every one on edge. The most recent being Logan smoking a cigar. He had walked past the Cajun, patting him on the back after smoking a cigar out side. The subtle sent resonated off of his cloths and triggered a fear driven response from Gambit, who jumped back against the wall clutching his head as images of a hideous man with cold gray eyes popped into his head. The General loomed over him, with his cigar inches from Remy's flesh, a sadistic smile on his face. He then took the end of his cigar and held it down on Gambit's neck, laughing as the hot embers burned through the mutant's skin drawling out a hiss from his clenched teeth. The memory flash was only a moment, but it left Gambit shacking, curled up on the floor, wet eyes blinking in shock. Cyclops, Iceman and Wolverine were all crouched around him, calmly calling out his name. They had learned early on not to reach for him after such a negative memory. A few moments later Jean and Emma appeared, easing his weary mind into a restless slumber, after which projecting the latest horror to be remembered into the minds of those gathered as was the routine so that they would be aware of what triggers to avoid. Once Wolverine experienced it through his own eyes, he left with a growl, needing to exercise his claws. Scott and Bobby just sighed with empathy for their friend then took him to the med lab to rest.

It was decided that Gambit should remember how to defend him self, as a way to help him feel more secure. Xavier knew that Remy hated to feel helpless, and would become more confidant and sure of him self if he knew how powerful he truly was. Hank had advised against it, worried that he would become over stimulated, but in the end he reluctantly agreed. The next morning the X-Men gathered in one of the large empty rooms they used for training, Gambit leaned against the wall, eyeing them suspiciously. Wolverine had agreed to be his sparing partner, and recommended that they both dress out in uniform. As the Canadian approached, he extended his hand to Gambit, to assure him there was no harm meant. Remy, shook it, with one eyebrow cocked, unsure what was happening. Wolverine then, lightly slapped the side of Gambit's head, grinning as he backed away. Remy's brow knitted in confusion, but when Logan advanced again, he dodged out of the way. He smiled as Wolverine chuckled at the fact he missed him, helping him relies it was a sort of game. Gambit had remembered in his past episodes of memory recovery that he was somehow part of this team, that they fought together against others like them selves, mutants. Although he was still unsure of what a mutant was and what that meant. As he took turns dodging and striking at Logan, his grin grew border, his adrenalin rising. When Logan advance once more he suddenly felt the erg to flip over the shorter man, which he did with great ease, landing on his feet in a crouch, spinning with grace as he swept out his opponents legs, bringing Wolverine crashing to the ground. The others all gasped, and Rouge clapped her hands in delight, running to Remy and kissing him on the cheek. Cyclops helped Wolverine to his feet, who was grumbling in annoyance.

"Wings, what do you say we bump it up a notch?" Wolverine nodded toward Archangel, who responded by approaching Remy with a 12 inch metal wand. He held it out for Gambit to take, who eyed it with caution, examining it before extending his hand. He looked it over as Warren backed away to give him room. Instantly he noticed a small indented button on one end, something most would not recognize. He pushed it in, and jumped as the wand extended into his 4 foot retractable staff. He looked up at the others in surprised, who smiled and nodded reassuringly. Slowly, he began to rotate his wrist, dipping the staff in figure 8's, then slyly switched hands with out braking rhythm. His eyes glowed with intensity, as his speed increased, adrenaline rushing threw him. His mind was shifting into over drive as images flooded his brain. He was moving faster and faster, spinning the staff behind him and striking invisible targets. A thousand battle scenes ran through his head, as his body mimicked the fragments he saw. He flipped and contorted his body, kicking and striking with the staff, a determined expression, on his sweat glistened face.

"He's going too fast, he's becoming overwhelmed!" Beast warned.

"I agree Henry, but to try and stop him now may be dangerous……..I just hope,……" Xavier's voice trailed off, as his eyes grew wide. "Oh, my!"

"Sir, what is it?" Cyclops asked.

"I'm losing control over his powers! Any moment he will…." Before the statement was finished, they saw the familiar glow of Gambit's hands. Sparks of energy were flying off his staff that was glowing with blinding intensity. Gambit was oblivious to this new development, his mind lost in a whirl wind of memories and feelings. His ears were ringing and the metallic taste of blood was in his mouth, but all he knew for sure was that he was losing control and that he felt like his blood was on fire.

"Bishop, try to absorb some of his power, Rouge, try to drain it! Wolverine, Colossus get your hands on him and hold him down before he hurts himself!" Cyclops was shouting orders as they all ducked for cover as more and more sparks of energy flew through the room.

"His mind is in complete chaos! It's too frantic to make any sense!" Jean cried, grasping her head that was now pounding. Bishop grabbed on to the staff, struggling to absorb the energy while Gambit fought back. Then Rouge managed to grab onto the sides of his face, absorbing the strength right out of him. But still he fought back, guttural cries of determination roaring from his throat. Wolverine and Colossus warped him in their arms, forcing him to the ground. Finally his strength was gone, but his eyes were fluttering and he was hyperventilating, blood spilling out his mouth and noise over his lip as his body flailed. Collectively the Telepaths shut down his consciousness, effectively putting him into a shallow coma, as Beast scooped him up into his arms and bolted out the door toward the infirmary, the others hot on his trail.

Hours later, after several tests, Gambit reemerged from the Lab, looking exhausted but with a smile on his face. The first thing he did was run up to each team mate holding out his hands as he practiced charging and unchanging, like a child showing off a new trick. It was obvious to all that he had remembered a great deal, and was acting more and more like his old self. They watched with amusement as he practiced throwing uncharged cards at different targets, still as accurate as he ever was. No longer was his head down, shoulders raised, walking along the edges of the hallway. His steps were sure footed and silent, his stride graceful and confident. He began going off on his own and practicing his acrobatics, doing flips and back hand springs and walking down the hall on his hands, which made for quit a sight. For Rouge, the best part was his firy eyes, no longer filled with fear and mistrust, but passion and a twinkle of mischief. Her heart began to flutter once again instead of ache.


	8. Chapter 8

Warning: violence and torture

**Warning: violence and torture. **

Remy's nightmares were growing in intensity, and he was reluctant to go to sleep, causing dark circles to form under his ruby eyes. Xavier knew that once the memories were excepted into his conscience, they would no longer plague his subconscious with the same regularity. Hesitantly, he made a suggestion to his X-Men. Magneto had found a few dozen disks in the General's office. Some with classified information, others with video surveillance of the interrogation room, capturing hours of frustrated cruelty. They had held off on viewing the taps both for Remy's privacy and because no one had a burning desire to find out how the Cajun spent the eight weeks while in the clutches of the General. Xavier's idea was that by knowing what possible triggers were, they could carefully orchestrate bringing about the negative memories, as a way of cushioning the fall. It was a necessary evil, and had to be done. That was why a viewing of the footage was to be held that afternoon to any team mates who were willing to watch. The other X-teams were included just to be made aware of what they were up against if they should be captured.

With Remy safely tucked away in a far off wing of the base watching T.V with Jubilee, the teams gathered in the large conference room. There was polite chit chat, but over all the mood was anxious and uneasy. Storm had repeatedly voiced her disapproval of Xavier's decision to allow the viewing of the tapes, an opinion backed by Wolverine and Rouge. All three had debated weather to go, but in the end found them selves standing in silent disapproval in the back of the room. Finally Magneto entered with the tapes and projector floating behind him. He wore a sullen face, and angry eyes, having already born witness to parts of the tapes, before becoming enraged and sickened. He walked to the front of the room, the others becoming silent. As he handed over the tapes to Xavier he rest his hand sternly on his shoulder.

"Are you certain this is wise Charles?" He was answered by a heavy sigh and s solemn nod. Beast and Cyclops set up the projector then took their seats. Every one was exchanging looks of nervous apprehension. The Professor sat in front of them, head down and eyes closed, then looked up and cleared his throat.

"There should be no doubt that the footage on these tapes will be both disturbing and shocking. As many of you know, we the X-Men have been dealing first hand with the various traumas caused by what happened at that facility. Gambit has come along way the past few weeks, just as resilient and strong willed as he has ever been." He smiled briefly. "But he is by no means healed, and every time a particularly painful memory is triggered, we are left to pick up the pieces. In order to help him cope with the horrors of his recent past, we must first understand what they are. I know at least a few of you disagree with the viewing of these tapes, as an unfair invasion of Remy's privacy." A grunt was uttered from Wolverine. "But I trust that all those present here today, will use this knowledge as a way to further help and aide fellow mutants that have been through similar ordeals." He concluded with a heartfelt sigh then moved to the sides and nodded to Jean who mentally dimmed the lights and started the projector. A breath was released as the screen flickered to life.

The room was completely empty, with the exception of one steal chair, bolted to the floor, which was white, like the walls. At the bottom of the screen was a date and time.

"That's only a few hours after the attack." Rouge whispered.

For almost a minute, nothing happened, then the sound of a door opening and several sets of footsteps echoed in the barren room. Four guards appeared on screen, dragging behind them an unconscious Remy LeBeau. He was still in his uniform but for his long trench coat which was replaced instead by a strait jacket, and the Genoshin collar around his neck. The guards dumped him in the middle of the room, his head hitting the ground with a thud, laying on his side as they begin chit chatting.

"Man, did you see the guys coming in from that mission?……. Half of 'em went strait to the ER." A tall soldier remarked.

"Yeah,…..and the rest were busy carrying in the body bags." A red haired soldier added.

"Hey, weren't there suppose to be more of these freaks?" A particularly venomous sounding soldier asked.

"Yhea, a lot more,………what do you think happened?" The youngest one asked looking down at the mutant.

"Way I heard it, they all took off in a plane just before the Sentinels made it through the hanger……….Left this one behind."

"Did he do all that damage?"

"Yep,…….even with his powers gone. Took down half the boys and a few sentinels with some kinda space age gun or something."

"I'll tell you what,…..it's bad enough they got those freakish powers, but to have better weapons too!……….I'm just glade this ones unconscious."

"Yeah, but for how much longer?"

"Relax,…they hit him with like four darts,……..He's so sedated I'm surprised he's even breathing!"

"Yhea, plus he's in a strait jacket for fucks sake!…….He's out numbered and out armed!……..He can't do shit!" The black haired guard with the snack like voice taunted as he kicked Gambit over flat on his back. It was then that he was greeted with a most painful surprise, as Gambit's metal boots spun out as if he were brake dancing and caught the guard off balance, sweeping out both of his feet. The X-Man was up in a second, strait jacket undone, as he gracefully took down each of the stunned guards with out giving them a chance to call for back up. He threw the jacket to the floor, grabbed two of the guns then bolted out the door, but not before grinning at the camera and winking. Those watching couldn't help but smile, but tried to squash their false hope knowing that he never actually escaped.

The room remained silent for many minutes, before the guards began to regain consciousness. Suddenly a short, broad man entered, in a general's uniform with two soldiers behind him. He surveyed the room, then walked over to the fist soldier slowly picking himself up. He grabbed the young man and shook him hard.

"What happened?……..Where's the prisoner?" His voice was harsh and demanding.

"He,………I don't know sir,…….We were,……he…." The guard replied still dazed. The General growled and threw him back to the ground.

"Find him,……..NOW!" He barked at the men behind him. Then he got on his walkie talkie and began shouting orders as he left the room, the other guards carrying the fallen soldiers out of the room. Again the white room was empty. The mutants sat, waiting with bated breath as the seconds turned to minutes, and went on and on. After a while Cyclops advanced the tape, until an hour or more had past on screen, when finally the room became once more occupied.

They could hear the sounds of struggling, then, Gambit was being escorted into the room, by no less then seven soldiers. His arms were held behind him and a gun was at his temple. Other guards were positioned around him, all weapons pointed in his direction. From out side the door a voice echoed to release the prisoner. The guards reluctantly complied, shoving him forward, anger in their eyes, as many were limping, holding their sides with blood on their face. Gambit stumbled forward, but regained his balance before he could fall, casually strolling over to the wall, and leaning against it, arms folded and legs crossed, as if he were waiting for a bus. His breathing was heavy but even, and he appeared uninjured but for a small trickle of blood from his nose. The guards all stood between him and the door, guns locked and loaded. The General walked toward him, circling him like a shark, hands folded behind him. There was a deafening silence, the only sound was the breathing of the guards, and the foot steps of the General.

"I suppose I shouldn't be surprised Mr. LeBeau, you being a master thief and all……..Or do you prefer Gambit?" The man asked in a mock politeness.

"What ever your pleasure be,…….Misur…..?"

"Call me General,……and as for you, it doesn't really matter now any way, because like the rest of your freakish friends you will be known only as a number……..Prisoner 24601. Has a nice ring to it don't you think?" He snickered at Gambit who only smiled and raised his eye brows.

"And were be dese freakish amies of mine den?………I took a look around on my lil' tour of de place and didn't see no one else………..It appears to me,…….dat you bluffin,………General." Remy looked at his boots then back to the man, whose face was in a stern frown.

"Well,……….24601,………Appearances can be deceiving………….In fact, we shot down the Black bird moments after your detainment. Unfortunately several of the occupants were mortally wounded,…….so we put them out of there misery." He stated, as a matter of fact.

"Oh,…..is dat so?………cuze I could have sworn I jus heard one of yer soldier boys talking bout how dey escaped." Remy pushed off the wall, walking forward.

"If that's what you would like to believe then go ahead………But it is certainly not going to help the X-Men who survived the crash……….Especially that little southern bell we have up stares." He smiled as Gambit's eyes narrowed. " That's right, she's up there right now,………entertaining some of the boys. Even through the gage in her mouth, we can hear her calling your name, as if you could do a thing to help her." He laughed as Gambit turned away, his fists clenched. He breathed hard for a minute, gaining control, then turned back around, an amused smile on his face.

"Now I know you be lying,………cuze ain't a man here that could handle a woman like her……….She'd have your boys on their knees begging for mercy!" He scoffed and walked to the other side of the room.

"Well, I suppose you know all about that, don't you Gambit. As I recall from my research,……it was she who left you to die in Antarctica,…..was it not?" He smiled as the Cajun stiffened, but did not turn around. "And now they have abandoned you again, casting you out just as the Guild of Thieves did before them. What is it about you I wonder, that people find so repugnant. After all, it's not every day that a man's first love tries to kill him, even putting a contract on his head, while his current soul mate leaves him to die, to freeze to death in the bitter cold of Antarctica. A matter of fact, life would be a lot easier for all involved if you would just cease to exist." The General knew he'd struck a nerve.

"You may t'ink you know me Misur, but you have no idea!………..Go ahead!…..Read me some more charming little facts off yer list!………I know who I am, de question is who de hell are you!……….Gambit t'ink life was jus FINE for all involved until you decided to crash de party and play Hitler!……….What you got against us Mutants any how?" Gambit struggled to maintain his composure but then managed to gain control over his emotions, well aware of the importance of keeping a level head.

"You, and your kind, pose an eminent threat to the American people and the world at large!……….It goes against nature and God him self to allow blue skinned animals, and demon eyed freaks to pollute the homespun race!" Now the General was losing his temper.

"Is dat what it is?…….You afraid we gonna breed wit your women and spawn more little muties till de whole world is more evolved den you?………..You afraid dat soon all your high tec weapons and threats wont make a bit of difference, cause now you ain't de only ones wit power?………..Well your right!……You should be afraid,…….hell, you should be pissing in yo' pants, cause soon their will be too many of us to fight, and the world will have to except us and embrace us as their brothers and where will dat leave de small minded, bigot, shit eaters like you?……ehe?…….Yo' pathetic! Luckily, for every angry, bitter, war monger out dere, dere be men like Charles Xavier,……who keep hommes like you and Magneto from bringing about world war three!……..And one day his dream will come true, maybe not in dis life time or de next, but some day." Gambit laughed at the General, his face twisted in disgust.

"But that day is not today!…..Or the next day, or even the day after that!…….And for right now you can dream all you want but it's not going to change the fact that you're here, alone,…….with no friends to help you,…….no powers to fight with,………and no one to hear your screams!" The General was a foot away from Gambit, their eyes locked in a fierce battle of wills. Finally the General raised his hand and pressed a button on a small controller. The Genoshan collar buzzed to life, glowing yellow, as Gambit let out a muffled cry through clenched teeth, falling to his knees grabbing at the collar. Those watching the tape gritted their teeth and pound their fists angrily. They could hear the guards laughing as Gambit's body shook with electricity. Finally the General released the button, and Gambit fell forward on to his hands, gasping as he coughed up blood. The General stood over him grinning, he grabbed a fist full of Remy's hair, yanking his head back to look into his eyes.

"Is……dat……all…..ya….got?" Gambit stuttered, then spit blood into the Generals face. Instantly the General backed away wiping his face while the soldiers each were shouting.

"Go get the doctor, we don't know what kind of diseases this thing may have!"

"No!" The General ordered.

"But Sir, he could be carrying the Legacy virus!" The solder objected. The general just glared at him, then back at Gambit who was grinning up at him with bloody teeth.

"Johnson, go get me some steal wire, a pack of matches, a cattle prod, and a tool box!……….The rest of you, take turns hitting him, and don't stop!" The General's eyes were cold and merciless. He watched as the men circled around Gambit, who was now on his feet, guard up, but not for long as once again the collar began to glow, forcing him down. They were on him at once, like rabid dogs on an injured cat, raining down punches and kicks, spiting at him and tearing at his uniform. At first he managed to deflect their attack, even dislocating one of the soldier's knees, but all the while, the collar glowed, keeping Gambit curled up on the floor, rethering in pain.

"Get up Remy, get up!" Rouge shirked, tears flooding her eyes. Storm wrapped her arms around her and held her tight, while Logan was passing in the back of the room, mumbling curses. The others all turned away and then back again.

Finally, the General released the button and ordered the men to set him in the chair. Remy was haggard and covered in more blood then clothing as it had been torn from his body, but he remained conscious, spitting out teeth, and blinking to keep the blood, sweat and tears from clouding his vision. He struggled only for a moment as his wrists were pulled together behind him, before he was hit twice in the ear, then punched in the gut. He slumped in the chair, sucking in air, in dispirit gulps, while his wrists were bound together with what seemed like a mile of metal twine. When they were finished he was pushed back and a bucket of cold water was thrown on him, to rinse off the blood.

"There we go, that's better!………I like to see what I'm working on. Oh, and you do make a pretty canvas 24601,……….but I will make you a work of art!" The General stood over him with a sadistic twinkle in his eye. Gambit glared back at him, defiantly, eyes flaring in contempt. "It astounds me how almost normal some of you muties look!…..I would walk right past you on the street and mistake you for a human being,………were it not for those demon eyes, revealing your true nature!" He reached into his tool box and pulled out a long knife. Smiling he held it up to Remy's right eye, pressing the tip, into the corner and inspiring a trickle of blood. Gambit sat absolutely still, his breathing stopped, and his eyes wide. "I would cut them out of your head, if it didn't take away the one identifiable mark of your mutation!" He whispered, but still the Camera caught it, replaying his words back to a frozen audience. He waited for Remy to make a move, say something, but even as the knife cut into his skin he sat like a statue, keeping his poker face on firm. The General smirked and brought the knife up to the top of his head, then used his other hand to grab a lock of Gambit's hair, yanking it out, then using the knife to roughly saw through the auburn mane. The only reaction from the Cajun was to narrow his tearing eyes and lock his jaw. Hand full after hand full of shoulder length hair was sawed or ripped from his scalp, with only the occasional grunt or hiss released trough clenched teeth.

When that was done the solders all took turns mocking him and tossing his severed hair in his face. The General stood back, admiring his work, then picked up a pair of shears and a pair of pliers. The X-Men shuddered at the sight of his implements, many excusing them selves from the room, only to be frozen at the door as the sound of a piercing scream emanated from the screen. Remy's eyes were wide in shock, his face paled, as his whole body was shacking.

"What do you say boys,……..should we make sure this mutie can never bring any more freaks into this world?………Let him keep a little or take it all off?" The General laughed as Gambit's body convulsed before he passed out, crumbling out of the chair. "Ah, well,……it'd be too much of a pain in the ass to put a catheter in him any how!……..Wake him up, wake him up,……..I sure as hell aren't tired,……and we still have a few more tools to play with!" He rubbed his hands together, and went digging.

"Uh, sir?…….How do we wake him up?"

"Damnit Smith!…..Do I have to tell you how to take a God damn piss too?…….Just give me those matches." He grabbed the pack from his hand and lit three at once dropping them on Gambit's back. They gathered around watching as his skin burned, but still he did not rouse. "Hell, this'll get him!" He smirked as he grabbed a cattle prod and came toward the unconscious form. The X-Men watched in sickened horror as the torture continued for hours, fast forwarding through the worst of it, and pausing only when their was dialect. Each time they marveled at Gambit's ability to keep his own while cursing him for being such a smart alec. On several occasions, he would turn his cries of pain into robustly singing French nursery rhymes or Zydeco songs, irritating the General further. With every breath he had he mocked the General and his men, asking when they planned on starting the interrogation, if any one had the time, to hurry up because he was missing Saturday Night Live, if they minded the fact that they each shopped at the same store, and that green wasn't really their color.

"You see,……..It take a real man,…….to ware…..pink!……..Through,…..I tend,…..to call it Fuchsia!" He sputtered out, hoarsely, with exhausted eyes, and a permanent grimace on his face. "General!……..You look done wore out,………It be time we take a brake, non?………You be pushing 6o, oui?…..Ain't good fer yer heart to strain yo' self like dis!" He grunted loudly as he shifted in his seat, eyes sparkling through the fog of pain and nausea. The General just smirked and nodded to his men.

"Get this scum outta my sight!……..And leave on the wire,……we can't be to careful when it comes to keeping those busy little hands of his out of trouble!" he watched as The guards dragged Gambit away, then fallowed behind.

Charles stopped the tape, and the lights came on. No one had actually managed to leave the room although more then half the occupants were pressed against the back wall, the farthest from the screen as possible. Several people had tears in their eyes or looked like they had been crying, while others wore a determined and revengeful frown. Magneto stood by Charles and rest a hand on his shoulder. Silence dominated the room, until at last the Professor spoke with tears in his own eyes.

"The human spirit never ceases to amaze me……..It can be intolerably cruel, feeding off the pain and misery of others,…………and it can be remarkably resilient, able to with stand what ever the world throughs at it. Remy has always been the later of the two,……..though some times a spirit can only take so much, before it reflects back to others the damage done………Many of you are aware of Gambit's role in the Morlock massacre." He looked up at the differing expressions around him, some thoughtful, others questioning as to were he was going with the statement. "Although Gambit has never felt comfortable with confiding in me, unlike my other X-Men, After so many years of watching his behavior and hearing second hand tales of who and what he is, I believe I know and at least partially understand the man he has become. Remy is fiercely independent and reluctant to trust, always looking over his shoulder, quality's instilled in him at an early age. Then as a thief he was taught how to hide his emotion, to ware a mask so that no one may ever know his fears, his hopes, his dreams. To open up, and let others in was a weakness, to go out of his way to help others, foolish and reckless. However, Gambit's heart is bigger then he dares admit, so when he was banished from the Guild of Thieves, his home, his clan and his first love, at the tender age of 18, his heart was broken, and he relied only on his survival instincts, becoming cold and callus. Is it any wonder then, that he ended up working for a man like Sinister?………Alone, with no one to help him control his powers, and although well versed in the ways of the criminal underworld, still too naive and young to understand true evil. I have no doubt that Sinister is a hard man to refuse, and eventually his empty promises became very real threats." He paused, then sighed and continued. "Gambit is a proud, and head strong young man, whose guilty conscious is a constant echo in his mind. And although I wish he had felt secure enough to tell us the truth of his role, I can understand his fear of our rejection. He has suffered before in silence, turning his hatred inward. We must work together with him to help him redirect his anger,……..or we shall surly lose him. If he closes us out, then he will once more stop feeling, stop caring. Let us not allow him to return to his darker days." Xavier opened his mouth again to speak, but shook his head, then left the room.


	9. Chapter 9

The next few days went on as they usually did, but it was plane that Gambit was getting restless, needing an outlet for his frustration and cabin fever. Logan decided it was time to unveil a special surprise he had been working on, some thing the Professor and Beast were still weary of. They finally agreed one evening after finding Gambit drunk in the kitchen after picking the lock to the liquor cabinet. He sat on the counter, a mostly empty bottle of whisky in his hand, smiling and hic-uping as he hummed the tune to frare au jack que. Havoc and Polis had found him, and tried unsuccessfully to retrieve the bottle from his hands. Resigning, they called down to Storm and Jean for help, knowing Cyclops would have a fit. Unfortunately, most of the team had just been on a recon mission, and came piling into the kitchen just in time to see the four circled around the inebriated Cajun, who grinned at them raising his bottle, before falling from the counter. And so a few days later, all were gathered out side the base to witness the unveiling of the big surprise. Gambit wore a suspicious smirk as Rouge lead him by the hand to the middle of the crowd.

"Professor,…..are you sure he's ready for this?" Cyclops asked in a skeptical tone.

"No,………but Logan has a point. Perhaps a bit of independence and freedom will do him good, providing of coarse Logan accompany him." Charles sighed. They watched with amused smiles as Gambit approached Wolverine, who was leaning against something coved in a sheet. The Canadian was smoking a cigar and suppressing a grin. He looked Gambit over, as if appraising him, before finally standing aside and gesturing with his hands. Remy looked at him with a befuddled look, then to the others crowded around.

"Well go ahead Shuga,……..see what it is." Rouge bit her lip in excitement, already well aware of the present hidden beneath. With one cocked eyebrow and casual shrug, he pulled off the sheet and stepped back, eyes wide and mouth opened.

A maroon Harley, sat glistening in the sun, chrome polished and waxed, with all the bells and whistles of his last. It was a splitting image of his former love, with the exception of the four aces, painted on the sides, a touch, Rouge knew he would enjoy. He let out a deflated breath, then looked around excitedly, as if asking, "For me?" Wolverine chuckled and nodded, watching as Gambit's shacking hands ran over the body, caressing the bike as he would a woman. They all stood waiting for the memory flash that was bound to occur, but it didn't come until he hopped onto it, coat whipping behind him as he turned the key and revved the engine. It hit him hard, as it usually did, causing him to gasp in pain as he brought his hands to his head, before falling off to the side and into the awaiting arms of Rouge, who held him steady as he shook. A moment or two later, he was back, looking up at the faces with a startled and confused expression, he jumped to his feet, and tilted his head, scratching it.

"What's wrong Gumbo?" Logan grunted folding his arms. Gambit looked at him, then opened his mouth as if to speak, but uttered only mumbled gibberish that sounded like French. It was as close as he came to speaking, but no one could understand him, including Henry and the Professor who were both fluent in French. When Logan answered him with a puzzled shrug, he became frustrated and started to pace, before finally turning back and demonstrating with his hands. He did it often, acting out his questions for the X-men like a game of shreds, which worked better sometimes then others. He pointed to the Bike then got on it, making a noise that imitated a motor and pretending to drive, then, without warning he leapt off the vehicle, flipping in the air and rolling on the ground, all the while mumbling his nonsense language.. The X-Men watched with knitted brows, trying their best to understand. He stood up and clapped his hands, bringing them apart and yelling, "Boom!" Then pointed back to the bike, an innocent look on his face. Each of his team mates looked at each other for answers until the Professor entered his mind to understand what he was trying to say.

"Ah,…….He is confused because he remembers his other bike crashing against the wall." Charles mused.

"Well,……We got ya a new one,…….fixed it up the way ya had it." Wolverine answered, as if it was no big deal. Remy's eyes grew again, as did his smile, he looked from, Logan to the bike and back again, before seizing the shorter man in a mighty bear hug, and placing a wet kiss on each of his sideburn covered cheeks. Wolverine pushed him off, with a stunned grunt, swearing as he wiped his face off, glaring at the Cajun who paid him no mind, his attention back on the Motorcycle. The others laughed at Wolverine as he grumble to him self.

"God damn Cajun frog,…….always kissing anything that walks past em,'……..twice on each god damned cheek." He muttered in fake annoyance, trying to hide the fact he was glade the Cajun liked the motorcycle, especially after all the time he had put into it. Gambit was running all around it, bouncing about like a child on Christmas day. Grabbing his team mates by their hands and pointing at the bike. He blitz attacked Logan twice more with frantic hugs and kisses, then darting away before he could be shoved off. Finally Logan went and got his Harley, pulling up next to Gambit, and grunting, gesturing his head towards the road. He didn't have to say a word, as Gambit hopped on his own bike and took off down the road, leading the way, a wild grin plastered on his face. Rouge took to the air and fallowed slightly behind, just in case.

However his good mood and high spirits came crashing down two days later as he was flipping through the Professor's files on the computer and stumbled across a picture of Sinister. He stared hard at the demonic face in front of his eyes, before the words Morlock and Massacre came popping out of the text underneath. The familiar throbbing pain in his head began to take over, his vision blurred, and his breath became shallow and short. Slowly the thoughts and images floated back into his memory, then came the sounds of screams and snapping bones. His head spun and throbbed as the chaos with in him grew. Beast had been with him, but left to go check some test results, as they were allowing him more alone time and freedom. No one was there to assist him during the episode, no one able to hear his mournful cries, and watch him curl up under the desk, rocking himself. His eyes were wide open, but all he could see was death, the slaughter of hundreds, nameless faces, crying out to him as he ran through the tunnels with their blood on his hands. In between the endless scenes of violence and murder, were glimpses of Sinister, grinning at him with his gagged teeth, he had needles full of toxic chemicals, and knives for dissection. Pain, pain and fear and blood, his own and countless others. It was becoming too much, the throbbing in his skull was amplified by the chaos of his mind, all twisting inside him, till he felt the vomit rising in his throat.

With haggard gasps for air, and dispirit cries he crawled out from under the desk, and scrambled to his feet, running out the door and down the hall, away from the picture of Sinister, and the nightmares it brought him. But he could not out run the sights and sounds of his forgotten past, no matter how fast he ran. He fled the base, running blindly through the fields and forests that surrounded it. The branches scratched his face and tore at his cloths, like the hands of the dead, pulling at his soul. His coat was snagged on some briers, but he could not stop, they were after him, hunting him down. He pulled himself free, leaving the trench coat behind.

He collapsed at last, crawling into the under brush of the dense forest, and curling up, crying in silence as he held his breath, to afraid to make a sound. It was a cold night out, frost covered the ground, and he laid frozen in place, eyes wide with terror. The memories would not stop, they could not stop, each playing out before his eyes again and again. He knew he was responsible, some how, for the deaths of so many. He felt his guilt and shame feed into his fear of Sinister. He thought of Rouge, wanting her warmth, needing her there by his side, but then he remembered Antarctica, the cold, the loneliness, they had abandoned him, she had abandon him. He deserved it he knew, he was guilty of murder and God knows what else. He heaved violently, vomiting as he chocked on his tears. He wanted to die, God let him die, let him freeze to death right here, alone and cold and forgotten, the way a man as worthless as he deserved to die. They hated him, all of them, and they were right too. His body shook with silent sobs as his mind became slow, his thought filled with fog, misery covering him like a blanket.

Hours later, just before dawn, he felt strong arms around him, gently lifting his frozen form from the ground and cradling him like a child. Who was this angle of mercy, and why were they helping him, he who had blood on his hands. A warm tear fell from above onto his rubbery cheeks' and stung. A voice came next, broken, but strong and deep.

"Storm to Cyclops, we have found him, tell Beast to ready the sick bay, he is frozen from the cold." She gazed down at the barely conscious form in her arms, and placed a gentle kiss on his forehead, then looked up to Wolverine and Night crawler, who stood next to them. She nodded to Kurt, who knelt down, and gingerly lifted Remy into his own arms, whispering a prayer in German, before vanishing in a cloud of sulfur with the Cajun in tow.

"He'll be ok Ro'." Logan helped the weather Goddess to her feet, clutching Remy's discarded Trench coat in the other hand

"I do not doubt it my friend." She sighed then lifted them both into the air, heading back to the base.

When Gambit finally woke up, he was not were he thought he was. Instead of laying frozen in the waste land of Antarctica, or strapped to a dissection table in Sinister's lab, he was wrapped up in soft blue sheets, with a quilt resting on top. His head, though still aching was cradled in pillows. He opened his weary eyes and blinked into the dimly lit room, shivering he pulled the blankets tighter, then sneezed, fallowed by a moan. His throat was sore, his head stuffy, and he couldn't stop shaking. Where was he any way? Not the X-mansion,……..this sick bay looked different. He tried to clear his foggy mind and put together his last conscious thought. He groaned with a heavy heart as he remembered the trial, Rouge and the others had discovered his secret and had left him to die,…..as he should have. Before he could muse further on the subject, the door opened, letting in a bright light from the hall way. He closed his eyes, and steadied his breath, to appear sleeping.

"Don't bother fakeing it Cajun, I know yer awake!" Wolverine grunted as he pulled up a chair next to the bed.

"Logan!……….Were am I?" He asked with a horse shout, then coughed so hard his whole body hurt.

"Easy Gumbo, no need to shout. Ya know I can't understand none of that gibberish ya keep speaking." Wolverine forcefully pushed him back into the pillows, than lay a hand on his forehead. "Damn kid, yer still burning up, even though yer shakin' like Drake just Iced ya over!" Gambit looked up at his fellow X-Man in confusion. Why couldn't he understand him?

"Wolverine?…….How did I get back from Antarctica?…….Were is Rouge?…….Were are the others?" He was struggling to sit up, but was to weak with sickness, and Logan kept him pined.

"Look Gambit,……just cool it, or Hank'll have to sedate ya!…….Don't worry,……..Sinister ain't here,……..your with friends, the X-Men, remember?" He sat back down as Remy, gazed at him in frustration and confusion.

"Remember?…….Of course I remember!…..What in de hell is going on here?" Gambit sat up strait and staggered out of bed, shivering and unsteady on his feet.

"God damnit Cajun, relax!……….Were in the hell do you think yer going?" Wolverine stood between him and the door.

"Get out of the way Mon amie!" Gambit warned, before coughing so hard he fell against the wall

"Calm down Gambit,………..I ain't gonna hurt ya!" Wolverine was talking to him as if he were a child. Before he could say another word the door opened and in stepped Rouge with the Professor and Hank, all surprised to see him out of bed.

"Remy, shuga…….yer sick, ya need tah be in bed." Rouge walked toward him but he backed away.

"Qui, cuz you left me to die in Antarctica!" He spate, becoming resentful as his frustration grew.

"He seems up set. Do you think he doesn't know where he is?" Rouge asked the Professor as she moved closer toward him.

"Didn't you hear me!?" He fumed as he sneezed again, feeling exhausted and becoming more and more frustrated and confused.

"I don't know, his shields are up. Gambit, I need you to lower your shields so I can understand what happened." Xavier was talking to him the same way, as if he was crazy or retarded.

"Non!……None of you are making any sense!…….I ain't letting no one in moi head!……Not no more!…….You just want to dig around for more reasons to hate me!" He was shouting through heavy breaths and racking coughs and sneezes. His fever was causing him to become delirious and unreasonable, but all he could think about was those words Rouge spat in his face, before leaving him in the bitter cold. He felt deeply hurt by their betrayal, no matter how deserving it was, and the shame and guilt were eating him up. Storm, Cyclops and Jean all entered the room, concerned looks on their faces.

"What seems to be the matter?" Scott asked the Professor.

"We're not quit sure. He is obviously upset, but It appears he dose recognize us………Perhaps he is caught up in his newest memory." The Professor mused, as they watched a very agitated Cajun pass back and forth, occasionally shooting them dirty looks.

"Have you tried to uncover what the newest set of memories are?" Jean asked.

"Yes, but he has his shields up and refuses to lower them. I can only presume that they were centered around Mr. Sinister, and his dealings with the man." The Professor answered.

"STOP!……..I'm right here!…….Don' talk 'bout me like I ain't here!……..And what do you mean dealings?………You know full well I worked for em'!………..That's my great secret!………..The reason I ain't worthy nuff' for your precious X-Men!" Despite himself, his eyes were tearing up, but he was damned If he would let them see him in such a state. He had made up his mind that he was leaving, even though his legs shook from the stain of standing. He was in no condition to go anywhere, but his anger and determination would suffice for lack of strength and physical well being. With a final irritated huff at their lack of comprehension, he shoved past them, smacking Rouge's hand away as he stormed out of the room.

It was odd that despite the fact he had no idea were he was, he knew exactly were every thing else was. He passed the Kitchen, and took a right, going past several of the X-Men's bed rooms until he reached his desired location. Remy, knew the door was unlocked, as well as the contents of the room. It was his room, well sort of, though he didn't sleep their much. He threw on his uniform and Trench coat, shacking with teeth chattering, and sneezing all the while. Then he threw some cloths into a duffle, grabbed his keys and took off. As he walked toward the exit, he became more and more aware of his conflicting memories and thoughts. He was going to ride his bike, but his bike had smashed into a wall, but Wolverine had got him a knew one, and that was only a few days ago. He stopped right before he reached the door, his face betraying his utter confusion.

He slowly, with a feverish mind, recalled the events of the last few days. How was it possible that he have two sets of memories for the same span of time. Unless,……..His blood ran cold, as he broke out in a sweat. Sinister must have him! He was playing tricks on Remy's mind, toying with him, the way he used to when he was a confused kid of 19. That meant he wasn't really walking at all, but was strapped to a lab table some were with electrodes monitoring his brain waves as Sinister fed him this hallucination. He began to panic, feeling more and more confused; he dropped the bag and looked around willing himself to wake up.

"It's not real, It's not real!" He shouted, falling to his knees.

"Remy,…….it's ok shuga!…….Just take it easy." Rouge was at the end of the hall, the others all behind her.

"Non!…….You ain't real, none of you!…….I know it's you Sinister, now wake me up!" His words still came out in a mish mesh of Cajun slang, broken English and French, making it impossible to understand a word he was saying.

"His shields are faltering due to his illness and extreme emotional stress!………I'm picking up something,…….it's all so confusing and jumbled." The Professor focused on Gambit who was yelling up at the ceiling and punching the wall.

"What's going on?" Siren asked as she rounded the corner with Cable.

"It appears Gambit's mind has gone through a massive memory recovery and now he is confused as to what is happening……………Hmmmmm,………He thinks this is all an illusion created by Sinister." Emma Frost had received a signal from Jean and had arrived at the other end of the hall, closest to Gambit.

"Yes Emma, your right,……….this is going to be tough to explain!" Xavier sighed as he made his way toward Remy who on his knees, for-head resting against the wall, mumbling with his eyes shut tight. For the next several hours the telepaths worked with Gambit to help him piece together the chaotic stream of memories, still unsorted but painfully present in his mind. To their surprise, Gambit now remembered everything up to the trial, as well as other memory fragments he had uncovered the past few weeks.


	10. Chapter 10

When at last he understood what was going on, he agreed to go back to the infirmary as he was feeling exhausted with illness

When at last he understood what was going on, he agreed to go back to the infirmary as he was feeling exhausted with illness. His feelings were all mangled, emotions conflicting toward Rouge and the others, but over all he was anxious. The few memory glimpses he had of the past had yet to be fully remembered and scared him. Deep down he knew what had happened, but every time he tried to remember all he felt was a dull, nauseating pain. After a few days in the infirmary, he broke out and ventured into the kitchen were he found Mystique eating sushi and reading a gossip magazine. At first sight he jumped back, hand full of cards ready to strike. She merely rose one eye brow, then shook her head mumbling under her breath.

"Gambit, you psychotic fool!……….Think,…….we are all here together. The United Mutant Liberation Force, or do you not remember? Perhaps I should call Mc Coy, after all you should be in bed were your not a threat to yourself or any of us!" She rose from her seat and hesitated as she waited for him to reluctantly fizz out his cards. He glared at her wearily, but then took a seat across from her, peering over a croissant. After a brief but uncomfortable silence, She looked back up at him, and smiled in an amused way.

"So you remember every thing up until the trial,……hummmm?" He nodded, eyes narrow. "And a little more too?" He leaned back in his chair, and crossed his arms.

"But still you can't figure out how to speak English?" She mocked him, using his own voice. He slammed his fist down and got up, heading for the door. "I can help you…….I can make you remember!" Mystique waited for him to turn around, then shape-shifted into the form of the General. Gambit's eyes grew, as his breath caught in his chest, and he pressed him self against the wall. Images flooded his brain, terrifying, torturous sights that made his knees buckle and his stomach turn. He felt as though he was blacking out when a firm but tender hand slapped him across the face.

Looking up from the kitchen floor, he relized Cyclops was holding him, and gazing down with genuine concern. His empathy felt the protective vibe coming from Scott, and it surprised him almost as much as the slap. Rouge was there too hollering at Mystique, and asking what she had done to him. The others piled in, and soon Remy was back on his feet blinking away the fragments of memory.

"I was merely assisting Remy in his memory recovery. I thought it was about time he stopped being caudled like an incompetent infant, and remember the truth. The reason we are all here!" Mystique spat defensively, matching Rouge's death glare.

"Well you thought wrong Mystique! He ain't even close to ready!……You know what happened last time. He's barely two shades past death and your fixing to drive him right inta his grave!" Rouge pointed harshly, eyes full of contempt.

"Who are you to say if he's ready or not?…….As any one even bothered to ask Gambit what he wants?……Has it occurred to you that the longer he puts this off the harder it will be?" Mystique's voice held a sort of hostel compassion, one not often heard.

"That may be true but it's not your call Mystique!…….Gambit is an X-Man, he's our concern not yours!…….We take care of our own!" Wolverine growled slightly but leaned against the wall casually, arms crossed.

"She has a point though. None of us have asked Gambit what he wants." Jean offered quietly. All eyes turned toward Remy, who was bent over, arms on the table top, supporting his weight. His head was down, uneven locks of auburn casting shadows on his anguished face. His eyes were shut tight, brow crinkled in pain, snorting short bursts of air. The memories were there, at the brink of his sub-conscious. Racing through his mind, vague but bitterly familiar images made brief appearances but left their rotten residue to linger in the for front of his consciousness, soling every thing he knew. It took every ounce of will power not to throw up as he felt bile rising in his throat. He opened his eyes a fragment, realizing a full blown migraine was only moments away. He stiffened slightly, as a gentle hand began rubbing his back, an involuntary noise came from deep in his throat, like a vocal shutter.

"Remy,………do you want to remember?…..Do you think your ready?" Rouge's voice was soothing though it trembled with concern for her lover. He stood up, fighting back his nausea, and the cold black fear that was seeping through him, making ever muscle strain and cramp with anxiety. He forced open his eyes that stung with the brightness of the kitchen light, and blurred with pain from the increasing pounding in his temples. With determination and defiance against his own weakness, he nodded and turned toward his friends prepared for what ever they had to throw at him.

Once again the X-Men were gathered in the conference room, an uneasy tension hung over all assembled. Hushed whispers and incoherent mumbles filled the room, and bounced off the walls echoing louder then they originated. Gambit stood in front of the screen, eyes locked strait ahead, fists clenched, mouth dry. He swallowed and it hurt, throat soar and restricted. Blinking out of his head ach induced trance, he looked around at the faces in the room, and couldn't help but feel contempt. What were they doing there? Why were they invited to witness his pain on full display? He should leave, right now! Just walk out the door and never come back. He could deal with not knowing, not remembering a few years of his life. He remembered far enough to be completely sure of who he was and completely disgusted with that man. The last thing he needed was a head full of new, even worse memories to help him feed his self hatred and shame.

To all those watching him at a distance, the Cajun appeared to be as calm as ever, certainly not at ease, but at least calm. The truth was quiet the opposite and Wolverine knew it, the same way he knew when Storm was sad, though she still carried her self with her regal head held high, or when Betsy was happy, though she would never allow her self to smile. They were the three hardest X-Men to read, each trained to keep their emotions in check. Gambit was the most complex, always sending mixed signals on purpose, always contradicting him self, always so full of surprises. The moment he thought he had him figured out, Remy would pull a 360 and Logan would be left scratching his head in bewildered amusement. But now was different, he took no joy at knowing for once how Gambit felt. The kid was ready to bolt, ready run away from his past the way he had so many times before.

"You ok Gumbo?" Wolverine walked up, and rest a hand on his team mates shoulder. Gambit looked at Logan's hand then into the man's face. His own eyes, full of anger and deep seeded dread, were kept at bay by Logan's cool blue ones, icing over the fire he felt ready to burn through him. Wolverine sensed his unease, the anxiety and fear had festered for too long, and now anger and frustration had taken over and were reaching a boiling point. "Keep yer cool Cajun, were here for ya!……Were family, don't let this eat ya up inside!" He whispered the words and ended them with a strong look, one both chastising him for his miss placed rage, as well as assuring him that he could handle this. Gambit nodded and looked away, trying his best to suppress the rage threatening to spill out and wash over those he knew didn't deserve it.

"Were ready Gambit,……..are you sure about this?" Cyclops asked, looking from Gambit to Wolverine, then back.

"Oui, mon amie." Gambit's voice was strong and determined. He spoke the few French words he knew they would understand. He recognized now that he could not for the life of him figure out how to speak English or even French, though he understood both perfectly well. Instead, the only language he could speak was his own bastardized Cajun French, complete with street slang and bayou gibberish. It was the way he spoke as a child, understood by the few that lived as he did. His first years of education came from drunken bums and illiterate whores, and of coarse Misuer Fagan, who was always drunk and had suffered a stroke once that permanently paralyzed half his body, making it nearly imposable to understand him. Remy hated the way he sounded, the broken incoherent language he had long ago forgotten, was now the only one he remembered. It was time to get this over with, time to remember why he couldn't speak, and why every one looked at him with pity.

The lights dimmed to black, sucking the noise from the room like a vacuum. The screen lit up white, then images appeared, four men in a white room, one of them In a chair. He was striped naked, his head down, body shacking with the effort of breathing, through a ball gage. The other men were circling him, taunting him, striking him with their fists. One took a baton and pressed it against the captive man's throat, laughing as the others took turns zapping him with tazers. The gagged man struggled, his hands bound together behind him.

Gambit walked toward the screen, unsure of what he was seeing. He looked back at the others with a confused expression and questioning eyes, but was met with down cast faces and reluctant nodes at him and the screen. He turned back, still not understanding what this had to do with him. Suddenly another man entered the room, he was in a generals uniform and waited as the other men in fatigues saluted him. The General walked over to the man in the chair and grabbed his short locks of hair, pulling his face back. The gagged man gurgled a growl, fallowed by mumbled words with a hostel tone.

Gambit jumped back, stunned by the image of himself. He backed away shacking his head, tripping over chairs and into friends arms. They tried to calm him, steady him on his feet, but he pushed away from them, his breathing heavy and frantic. He ran up to the screen, eyes wide, fists clenched., angry noises ripping from his throat. The General was whispering threats as he held his cigar on the young mutants flesh. The Remy on screen shook in silence, sweat beading on his skin as the stench of his own burnt flesh filled his flared nostrils. Red eyes burning, full of hate he bit down on the ball gag so hard, his jaw screamed in protest.

"What?….Is there some thing you wish to say 24601?…….Hummmm?………Speak up!…….Your not making any sense!" The General spat, echo's of the soldiers laughter behind him. He was answered by more silence, as Remy tapped into a reservoir of strength even he didn't know he had. His body stilled, his breaths became silent and his eyes narrowed. His determination and strength was intimidating and eerie. The smirk disappeared from the General's face, transforming into a look of disgusted amusement, and perhaps even respect. The soldiers on the other hand shifted back and forth, glancing at each other with nervous looks, anxiously licking their lips and fighting with their guns. Suddenly the General struck Remy across his face with a right hook punch, then a left, then another right. Each time his head snapped back, gaze fixed on the General, a silent, "Fuck You", in his hell fire eyes. The General sneered then started hitting him again, but this time he didn't stop, not until Remy started to shack, a low gargling from his throat. The General stepped back, a satisfied expression on his face. Then he realized the strange noise the mutant was making wasn't crying, but was in fact laughter. Remy was in hysterics, laughing so hard, he would have fallen over. Eyes wild and filled with tears, gasping for air between loud laughs as blood poured down his face, and onto his chest The men in uniform all backed up, even the General seemed off settled. Through the ball gag Gambit began to sing, the melody a familiar French nursery rhyme.

The X-Man known as Gambit, stood 6 inches away from a 6 foot screen, watching a forgotten memory of a hell he didn't want to remember. As the image of himself began to laugh, so too did he, recognizing at once the feeling of utter hopelessness, not caring what was said or done, just laughing because the only other option was to cry. He fell to his knees in front of the screen, and soon his laughs became anguished cries. He was buckled over, fingers laced in his hair, the familiar throbbing of memory recovery dull compared to what was being remembered. The images were so sharp and clear, they cut through his consciousness like a razor, shredding his mind into ribbons only to melt back together, each piece falling into place. He remembered the siege on the X-Mansion, how he had warned them and volunteered to stay behind. His hatred for the General was raw and dominated all else but pain. He remembered each physical assault, each psychological torture, each humility and indignity he was subjected to, and when the agonizing stream of memory was finally over and the puzzle was complete, he was left curled up on the floor, gasping as his body shook with pain.

He blinked open his eyes, that were blurred with tears, coughing, and yelling in angst, sitting up, then buckling over. Both hands hitting the sides of his head as he began to rock back and forth. French curses poured from his lips, but mostly he cried out, "Mon Deuie, Mon Deuie, Mon Deuie!" The pain, the fear, the humility and the helplessness, all gave way to anger, frustration and hostility. He felt a deep sense of injustice, of wrong deeds done, and all of his rage was driven toward one man, the General. There were hands on him, gentle and soothing but he pushed them away in contempt, and staggered to his feet, still crying out, but it was in angry, irrational out busts, mixed with devastated cries of anguish. Gambit passed the room, hands clenched in glowing fists. The others watched him with sympathy and little bit of anxiety, not sure what he would do next.

Rouge tried to calm him but he lashed out, shoving her away and throwing him self back against the wall, shacking his head as he slid down until seated, his knees bent, both hands in his hair, eyes wet and starring straight out, as if focusing. He became very quiet, his breathing regulated. Slowly the others approached him, unsure if he would be violent.

"Remy,……are you alright?" The Professor asked in concern. Receiving no answer, he asked again, and this time, red eyes slowly drifted over to meet Charles, a vacant stare most present.

"Why?" He asked with a tearful voice, barely above a whisper.

"Why, what?" The Professor asked unsure.

"Why didn't you kill me?" The question sounded so innocent and broken, it made those in the room want to cry.

"Because we knew you were strong enough to survive." Charles answered in a soft tone. Remy thought about it for a moment, then closed his eyes and remained silent for a long time.

"Well,………..you were wrong." He said in a cold, callus tone. When he re-opened his eyes they were caught in a gaze that felt like the fires of hell were freezing over. He stood, head tilted down, eyebrow cocked, lips curled into a smirk with thumbs tucked in his belt loops. Instantly those who knew him best backed away, sharing anxious looks with those who didn't. Gambit was in a playful mood, and therefore a dangerous mood. It hadn't happened often, but at times when the team was under the most stress, Gambit seemed to resort back to a carefree, devilish persona to help him cope with his emotions and often theirs too. It had always annoyed Cyclops who thought the mood change was just Remy refusing to acknowledge the seriousness of the situation. That was the case until one cold winter night when the X-Men responded to a distress call from some mutants who claimed their friends had been abducted by the FOH. They infiltrated the base and found the captives, as well as disturbing photos of sexual assault against an unknown mutant girl of a tender age. While the others all reacted with disgust, anger and grief, Gambit grew very silent, his eyes closed. When Cyclops spoke to him, the team leader was greeted with that hostel gaze and humorous smirk. Before he could finish his thought, Remy was gone, racing down the hall way to were the FOH members had barricaded themselves. He blew open the door and began charging every thing insight, punching, kicking and braking anything he couldn't charge.

By the time the rest of the team made it through the debris, to were the FOH had been hiding, they found Gambit, kneeling amongst the ruble, covered in blood, most of which wasn't his. The FOH were scattered everywhere, few still alive and intact. The seen would have been disturbingly familiar if it had been Wolverine on a feral day, but as it were, it was the smooth talking, always calm and casual Cajun. The most unnerving part was the way he seemed completely detached from everything, as he lit a cigarette and walked past their shocked faces back to the Blackbird. Since then, the subject had been brought up only twice, and both times Gambit refused to discuss it.

Now they were faced once again with the wild and dangerous Cajun who seemed to radiate an intense fire of hostel emotions.

"Gambit,………calm down. Every thing will be alright." The Professor offered with a cautious mind probe that was immediately shut out, and emphasized with a painful sting.

"How 'bout you keeping de hell outa moi head Prof!………..And for de rest of ya,……..jus' stay outta my way!" Gambit held up his glowing cards to make the point, and headed for the door.

"Wait!………Remy, were are you going?" Rouge flew in front of the door blocking his path.

"Chere!……Get outa de way!" His expression was half grimace half smirk with flames in his eyes and death on his mind.

"Gambit!………..Now is not the time to act irrational!" Cyclops ordered, walking toward him.

"NON?………DEN WHEN BE DE TIME, EHE?……….YOU TELL GAMBIT!" He whirled around with a thundering bolt of emotions ripping through his calm, callous exterior. His eyes betrayed his inner turmoil, his humility and rage, his need for vengeance strongest of all. He walked toward a stunned Cyclops shouting, his steps deliberate, fists clenched and glowing. "CAUSE RIGHT NOW BEING RATIONAL AIN"T TO HIGH ON MY LIST OF PRIORITYS MON AMIE!" He stopped two inch's from the leader of the X-Men. He hissed through clenched teeth with water rimed eyes. "Mais si vous plate! You tell Gambit how he 'spose tah feel!……How he 'spose tah react!…….God forbide I behave irrationally!…….God forbid I GO OUT AND FIND DAT SICK,TWISTED SACK O' HOURSE SHIT DAT CALLS HIM SELF GENERAL!…….Cause when I do……..!" He grinned and shook his head as he backed away, tears rolling down his cheeks.

"G…Gambit!……X-Men don't kill!" Scott stuttered half heartedly. Remy had turned back and headed toward the door, staring strait, past the friendly faces full of pity and concern.

"Den I won't kill em,……..just watch em bleed tah death!" The words were as hard as steal and cut through the room like a razor, leaving them shredded and cold with the promise of his threat.

"Sorry Gumbo,………..it's too late." Wolverine's gruff voice sounded almost sheepish or at least a little regretful. Gambit stopped, but did not turn around, his eyes narrowed and he ground his teeth.

"What you talking 'bout homme?" The whole room held it's breath as Logan walked toward Gambit, stopping a few feet behind him.

"It's already done……..Don't remember doing it, but Rouge said she recognized his face from the tape as one of the guys I shredded at that secrete base we found ya in……….I went nuts and started ripping apart every scum sucker that crossed my path……" He sighed and added quietly, "Including that guard that took a special interest in ya." Remy flinched then shuddered as that particular memory flashed through his mind and bile rose in his throat. His fists clenched and he slowly turned around, shaking silently.

"He's gonna blow!" Iceman whispered under his breath. The others all backed up except for Wolverine who braced himself, prepared to let the Cajun vent his aggression, knowing any damage done would heal soon enough.

"Gambit!"

"Remy,….Shuga?"

"Stay back!" Wolverine barked at the others. "Let it happen!" No sooner had he spoken then Gambit cried out, a gut freezing, murderous scream of rage and vengeance. He lunged forward attacking his own team mate with a ferocity none had seen before in the always calm and calculating Cajun. It was not his typical style to go berserk and wildly strike out without any for thought, and in truth, Wolverine could have easily fended off the uncontrolled blows and gained the upper hand, but the Cajun needed this, the way any man who'd been so unjustly wronged and violated would need it. He had stolen Remy's right to enact his vengeance on the one's responsible for his pain. Now it was up to Wolverine to take on the responsibility of his actions and let the Cajun come at him full force, or else he knew the kid would never be all right, that he would always resent Logan for taking it away from him. This had to happen, no matter how unnatural it felt for all involved. Xavier knew, and so kept the others at bay. Some didn't understand and others didn't want to. Finally Rouge couldn't take it any more and cried out.

"STOP REMY STOP!…….FER GOD SAKES IT"S LOGAN!" She screeched and covered her mouth as she turned into Bishops strong embrace. Gambit's strikes slowed, his breathing harsh and broken as he looked down through new eyes at the bloody mess of a man pinned beneath him.

"L….Logan?" He gasped, eyes wide with shock, body trembling from the adrenalin rush.

"Yhea Gumbo,…….guuhhh……it's me." He coughed and blood poured from his mouth. Remy shifted his weight off his team mate and sat flat on the floor, looking at his bloody hands. He silently closed his eyes then looked up at his friends, half of which could not meet his gaze, the others looked at him in disbelief. He began to shack again, feeling all warmth drained from his body. His fire and passion for vengeance had been satisfied leaving only the dark emptiness that dwelled in the pit of his stomach and grew until consuming his entire being. He could not cry, or laugh or curse or sigh,…..only sit and let the dark nothingness swallow him whole. Before he closed his eyes, and his body went limp, giving in to oblivion, he whispered one last word to any who cared to hear it.

"Dessol!" And then his body collapsed on it's self, landing on top of Wolverine who had already begun to heal. He sat up and held the unconscious body, who's face was down, hair cascading over the sides, shielding him from the intrusive eyes of all the gawking on lookers.

"Wolverine?" Cyclops said urgently as if just braking out of a trance.

"I'm fine Cyke!………And now Gumbo will be too."

"I….I don't understand!" Kitty stammered with tears in her eyes.

"It had to happen darlin,……..A man just can't let something like that go. Some crimes cut so deep that only the spilling of blood can make amends."

"But blood has already been spilt!………Why did you let him take out his anger on you!……He had no right!" Kitty protested.

"HE HAD EVERY RIGHT!" Wolverine barked, but then regained his senses. "A man like the Cajun ain't one to let nobody fight his battles for him…….. I did him wrong by killing that General. I took his revenge from him,…….Spilled blood that wasn't mine to spill. But who better to fulfill that debt then a man who can heal up afterward?…….Don't go blaming the Cajun for loosening his head cause he'll be better off for it, ain't that right Chuck?" All eyes turned to the Professor who slowly looked up from the crumpled form in Logan's arms.

"His rage has died down, his thirst for revenge has been quenched and at the moment, his mind is calm if not at peace. We must allow him time to heal and sort out his feelings…….But at least now he knows,…….for better or worse,…….now he knows." With that Xavier exited the room, leaving all to ponder whether time really could heal all wounds, or maybe just conceal the scars.

The End

Hope you all enjoyed the story, a bit dark I know. I can't help writing the Remy angst angel cuz I love the idea of the X-Men as a family not just a team who support each other. I apologize if the end is anti-climatic but that's all I could come up with. And thank you for bearing with me on the spelling errors. Hopefully they were not too distracting.


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